Many proponents of autonomous, self-driving vehicles argue that the first industry that will be completely and totally overhauled by self-driving cars/trucks (even before consumer vehicles) is the long haul tractor trailer business. The first five sentences out of his mouth included the words: John was scared about his future employment, his livelihood, and his future. I was genuinely curious - before I entered high school I thought it would be fun to drive a truck or a car for a living (personally, I find driving to be a pleasurable, therapeutic experience).īut my question was also a bit self-motivated as well:Įarlier that morning I had just finished writing the code for this blog post and wanted to get his take on how computer science (and more specifically, computer vision) was affecting his trucking job.

I caught up with John a few weeks ago during a family dinner and asked him about his trucking job. He also fits the “cowboy of the highway” stereotype to a T, sporting a big ole’ trucker cap, red-checkered flannel shirt, and a faded pair of Levi’s that have more than one splotch of oil stain from quick and dirty roadside fixes. John is a nice, outgoing guy, who carries a smart, witty demeanor. My Uncle John is a long haul tractor trailer truck driver.įor each new assignment, he picks his load up from a local company early in the morning and then sets off on a lengthy, enduring cross-country trek across the United States that takes him days to complete.

Tired open source coders