Here’s a Topic We Can Agree On

[BarryBobPosthole]

Made you look! Actually I doubt it.

What do you guys think of self driving cars? Will you willingly ever get in one and allow the car to drive itself to wherever you are going?

And I guess one of the big drivers (pun intended) of the technology is big rigs. They can’t find enough qualified drivers is what they’re saying and it won’t be all that long before we have self driven eighteen wheelers on our roads.

I dunno about you but it scares the bejeebers out of me. And the answer to my first question is FUCK NO.

So flame away about my curmudgeonliness.
And it coming soon to a highway near you. Count on it.
BKB

[BarryBobPosthole]

And I just wonder if the robot semis will be programmed to pull out right in front of you to pass at 61 mph the truck in the slow lane that is going 60.9 mph.

BKB

[Thumper]

And I just wonder if the robot semis will be programmed to pull out right in front of you to pass at 61 mph the truck in the slow lane that is going 60.9 mph.

BKB

Trust me, it's just as frustrating for the truck drivers. Many company-owned trucks are governed (I believe for insurance purposes). Drivers get paid by the mile and per DOT regs, can only drive 11 hrs (actual driving time with a total limit of a 14 hr. workday). When I drove, my company (Werner) had us governed at 65 mph. Swift (for example) is governed at 63 mph. Believe me, it's stressful running 80,000 lbs. down the road and trying to pass with a 2 mph difference in speed capability. Then, what inevitably happens is during your pass, you hit a slight grade. Now my 80,000 pounds with a 65 mph governor is dragging me bassackwards since the Swift truck with a 63 mph top end is only running at 40,000 lbs. Now the Swift truck is slowly eating up the ground I worked so hard to gain. Believe me, we DO NOT like getting hung out on the inside lane with a train of cars getting frustrated behind us. Sure, I could always back off and simply follow a dang Swift truck so the little 4-wheelers don't start crying and throwing hissy-fits, but that 2 mph difference would scrub off another 660 miles/mo. of my already minimal coverage at 65 mph. That's basically a day's pay out the window as well as the possibility of missing arrival times and having to sit in a yard someplace waiting to unload the next day. ANOTHER day's pay out the window plus running late for the next pick-up, etc. etc. ... or losing the next load completely and again, having to park while awaiting a new load assignment. If the wheels aren't turning, you aren't getting paid.

There are always two sides to every story grasshopper.

BTW ... they're also working on pilotless airliners ... for the same reason ... a shortage of pilots. Think about THAT one! :hair

[BarryBobPosthole]

Trust me, it's just as frustrating for the truck drivers. Many company-owned trucks are governed (I believe for insurance purposes). Drivers get paid by the mile and per DOT regs, can only drive 11 hrs (actual driving time with a total limit of a 14 hr. workday). When I drove, my company (Werner) had us governed at 65 mph. Swift (for example) is governed at 63 mph. Believe me, it's stressful running 80,000 lbs. down the road and trying to pass with a 2 mph difference in speed capability. Then, what inevitably happens is during your pass, you hit a slight grade. Now my 80,000 pounds with a 65 mph governor is dragging me bassackwards since the Swift truck with a 63 mph top end is only running at 40,000 lbs. Now the Swift truck is slowly eating up the ground I worked so hard to gain. Believe me, we DO NOT like getting hung out on the inside lane with a train of cars getting frustrated behind us. Sure, I could always back off and simply follow a dang Swift truck so the little 4-wheelers don't start crying and throwing hissy-fits, but that 2 mph difference would scrub off another 660 miles/mo. of my already minimal coverage at 65 mph. That's basically a day's pay out the window as well as the possibility of missing arrival times and having to sit in a yard someplace waiting to unload the next day. ANOTHER day's pay out the window plus running late for the next pick-up, etc. etc. ... or losing the next load completely and again, having to park while awaiting a new load assignment. If the wheels aren't turning, you aren't getting paid.

There are always two sides to every story grasshopper.

BTW ... they're also working on pilotless airliners ... for the same reason ... a shortage of pilots. Think about THAT one! :hair

They still piss me off. And I 44 is the absolute worse. They will pull out to pass with a foot between you and their rear bumper.

BKB

[Arty]

I saw a driverless Penske truck the other day. It was for sure full of illegals.
And to answer your question....hell to the no.

[johnboy]

The technology just isn't there yet - not even close. So NFW would I let the car drive me around. Driverless big rigs and planes gives me the willies. Gonna kill a buncha people.

[Thumper]

They still piss me off. And I 44 is the absolute worse. They will pull out to pass with a foot between you and their rear bumper.

BKB

Well, that may be an exaggeration, but what's happening is based on the same reason above. They come up on a slower truck and need to pass immediately if possible. It's like NASCAR, if they they let up for some reason, it takes 'em two more laps to get back up to speed and make up the ground lost. If the truck lets up and falls in behind the slower truck, he's lost his momentum and now when he pulls out to pass, he's trying to gain speed to get by ... which also means you'll be stuck behind him even longer than if you'd have just let him pull out in the first place. Having been there, done that ... I watch trucks ahead of me and anticipate what they need to do. I'll many times back off and give them space so they don't have to get out of the throttle. I have all the respect in the world for those guys and know how stressful some of those situations can be. Of course, like anything else in life, you also have your assholes in the business.

[Arty]

Well, that may be an exaggeration, but what's happening is based on the same reason above. They come up on a slower truck and need to pass immediately if possible. It's like NASCAR, if they they let up for some reason, it takes 'em two more laps to get back up to speed and make up the ground lost. If the truck lets up and falls in behind the slower truck, he's lost his momentum and now when he pulls out to pass, he's trying to gain speed to get by ... which also means you'll be stuck behind him even longer than if you'd have just let him pull out in the first place. Having been there, done that ... I watch trucks ahead of me and anticipate what they need to do. I'll many times back off and give them space so they don't have to get out of the throttle. I have all the respect in the world for those guys and know how stressful some of those situations can be. Of course, like anything else in life, you also have your assholes in the business.

There’s one LESS asshole in that business since you stopped driving.

[Thumper]

And I have a custom built stool for you!

[Chicken Dinner]

I’ve never been on I44, but I bet I81 here in Virginia could give it a run for its money. I spend a ton of time on that road and we’d all be a lot safer if your average car driver had even an iota if understanding about the physics and mechanics of a loaded semi going down the road. Even more so in a hilly or mountainous area like I81 passes through.


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[Bwana]

There MAY be some situations where it is doable but it scares the crap out of me, too many variables to be able to account for. A big concern here is the weather; how are they going to deal with icy roads and blizzards????

[BarryBobPosthole]

I’m wondering if it is smart to become even more dependent on the gps satelite network. We already depend on it to the point that much of our economy would grind to a halt without it, it is so pervasive. And it it a very vulnerable network.

BKB

[Chicken Dinner]

You dufes (dufi?) sound like my Grandpa talking about cruise control back in the day...


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[LJ3]

As a technology professional. No. Nope. Nyet. Nada. uh uh. Hell to the no.

[Thumper]

I'm with Chix, I'd trust technology over half the drivers on the road these days. I'm all for taking control away from some of those numbskulls!

[BarryBobPosthole]

I'm with Chix, I'd trust technology over half the drivers on the road these days. I'm all for taking control away from some of those numbskulls!

There is some truth in that. If you think about it, to be considered successful almost any algorithm only has to outperform the average human. Can driverless technology be as good or better as the average human driver?

BKB

[Thumper]

Yup!