There's likely to be a significant period between the first driver-less trucks transporting goods across unpopulated areas and the vehicles being competent enough to detect the fact that someone is unloading the vehicle and that that car sitting in front of you is not traffic, but is just there to make you stop while you are pilfered.
The move from a crime involving people to one only involving property may well lower the bar to would be criminals.
I'd expect them to have a lot of surveillance cameras on for this reason. Also as dashcams for collision liability, especially for the first truck vs. cyclist death incident.
I'm in europe, few guns around here. Still I'd rather run/comply/hide than risk my life for 20t potatoes.
To figure out which truck has the iPads and get away with them you'd need:
- an insider to know the time and content of the truck
- stop the truck
- unload the truck at the spot (it will refuse to move your way)
- deal with an alarm system (maybe lights and sirens)
- get away and sell all the high value goods despite their serial numbers
Should it become a problem we'll just ship all the boring stuff autonomously and the rest with a guard that needs no extra breaks and can sleep on the road.
Unlikely. At least not with a firearm. Carrying weapons across state lines is a legal nightmare due to the inconsistent state laws. Truck drivers also get stopped by the cops more often than your average driver so I can't imagine many would risk it.
As with most attacks, the human is the weak link. Self-driving trucks, and self-driving ships, will both reduce theft. You can't threaten and/or bribe the driver. No driver means no need for the driver to sleep or pee. There will be no limits on the driver's duty cycle, and hence less exposure hazards. No driver means no need to provide convenient controls for diversion.
About the trucks, you file a police complaint, and the police goes after the thieves. They may decide to ignore your complaint if it is rare, but will almost certainly not ignore if it becomes common.
Just like they do with armed truck robberies today.
I wonder how much Trucks will be needed in the future. We will probably also have self driving Palettes and Packages. Which will be routed directly from the producer to the consumer.
Sure, let's suppose that happens. Then as next optimization you will have detachable wheels and engine, because that way you can use them better. And because some Palettes and Packages go the same way, you might want to carry them on the same set of wheels and engine. See where I am going with this? ;)
Aren't heavy trucks considered overpropotional bad for the Roads and would use more Tires (respirable dust) and produce more noise. I don't think there is that much inscentiv if you can't cut down on expensive drivers or tech. And the tech will get very cheap some day.
There's likely to be a significant period between the first driver-less trucks transporting goods across unpopulated areas and the vehicles being competent enough to detect the fact that someone is unloading the vehicle and that that car sitting in front of you is not traffic, but is just there to make you stop while you are pilfered.
The move from a crime involving people to one only involving property may well lower the bar to would be criminals.