With self-driving trucks becoming more of a possibility, Daimler is aiming for self-driving trucks in 10 years. Therefore, this calls for trucking companies to make renovations, now! The company, Daimler, has now established their first class 8 truck with level 2 driver’s assistance. This new assistance offers adaptive cruise control and lane keeping assistance.

Unfortunately, current load bearing trucks aren’t as up to date as passenger cars and the technology hasn’t quite adapted to oversized loads.  Thus, those who have driven in the new Daimler Freightliner Cascadia claim that these features were long overdue.

Luckily, these new trucks track the vehicle in front of them and allow the driver to more easily adapt to different varieties of roads. Like cruise-control in modern passenger cars, the trucker can drive at the desired speed until the system detects a slower car that drives in front of it. This new top-of-the-line technology also ensures that the driver maintains a safe distance. This is similar to the parking cameras that are available on newer four-wheel-vehicles. This is also a safer system because it removes pesky blind spots that most truckers have learned to work around.

Also included is the  new system’s “active brakes.” These apply an emergency stop system if someone, or something, were to stop in front of the car.

As a job that requires long-hours and dealing with the stress of other drivers on a daily basis, the new system will be a great addition to trucks. Also, better equipped truckers means safer roads for all drivers!