Autonomous trucking system developer Kodiak AI is another step closer to its goal of launching long-haul driverless trucks by the end of this year. Enhanced Inspections of Kodiak’s autonomous trucks are now integrated into established state roadside screening and enforcement systems via collaboration with PrePass, a weigh-station bypass, toll payment, safety and compliance solutions provider.
This collaboration creates an automated bypass process for autonomous trucks, incorporating them into existing safety and enforcement operations and eliminating the need for state agencies to design a separate roadside process from trucks with drivers.
Initial implementation began in Texas and Louisiana on Monday.
“Launching driverless service is not just about building technology. It’s about building a solution that works in the real world,” said Kodiak AI Founder and CEO Don Burnette. “Our collaboration with PrePass is an important milestone as we prepare to launch long-haul driverless operations. It enables us to provide critical information to commercial vehicle enforcement agencies, maintain compliance with safety requirements and scale the Kodiak Driver across the United States.”
Through the Enhanced Commercial Motor Vehicle Inspection Program (Enhanced Inspections), developed to support commercial AVs, Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) inspectors verify that a driverless vehicle is free of safety defects before it hits the road.
[RELATED: Going driverless would drop trucking insurance 40%, give $9 billion back to consumers, report says]
Kodiak’s Enhanced Inspection information, which is valid for up to 24 hours, is passed on via this integration to roadside enforcement for verification so they can authorize bypass or provide additional instructions as needed.
PrePass Chief Technology Officer Chas Wurster said PrePass has been working with state agencies for years to prepare for the rollout of autonomous trucks across its infrastructure of roadside screening technology by building on the existing systems rather than requiring replacement with new technology at its more than 580 locations. That nationwide footprint provides a foundation for expanding the collaboration beyond Texas and Louisiana, he added.
“The next barrier to scaling driverless trucking isn’t inside the truck. It’s the infrastructure around it,” Wurster said. “By working with Kodiak to advance driverless trucking into real-world commercial operations, PrePass is operationalizing the blueprint for what comes next: bringing states, roadside infrastructure and trusted data together to make autonomous operations work at scale.”
