Austin area to soon see driverless semi-trucks

TEXAS — Driving along State Highway 130 — the fastest highway in Texas — in the Austin area now means seeing driverless semi-trucks operate along the way.

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has partnered with Cavnue, a smart road technology company, to pilot the “Smart Freight Corridor.” It’s a 21-mile highway stretch designed to “advance the future of freight mobility,” according to Cavnue’s description of the project. TxDOT and Cavnue announced this project in late 2023.

The corridor’s technology is designed to prioritize highway safety, and it’ll include sensors, cameras, radar and wireless communication systems that constantly update experts on the state of the highway: traffic, road conditions and hazards. It’s the first of its kind in the country.

“Safety is priority number one at TxDOT. The largest opportunity to reduce crashes is by improving the driver experience by broadcasting digital roadway information to on-board automated systems to help advanced and automated trucks navigate the roadway environment safely and more efficiently,” said Mike Arellano, who is the deputy district engineer at TxDOT.

The expansion comes just months after the Texas Legislature passed Senate Bill 2807, which set a standard statewide system to permit operation of autonomous vehicles.

Running from Georgetown, through Hutto and Pflugerville down to Del Valle, an average of 57,000 vehicles daily will travel through the corridor. Those trucks will also cut carbon emissions using Cavnue’s technology by alerting the trucks to potential debris and traffic.

The project first launched in late 2024 with only a 4-mile stretch. This expansion isn’t the end, Cavnue representatives wrote online.

“This corridor has the potential to expand across key interstate routes, including I-10, I-35 and I-45, strengthening freight movement within the Texas Triangle,” they wrote.