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Driverless truck corridor proposed from Mexico to Canada

After the first licensed self-driving truck was unveiled earlier this month, there are now plans for a driverless truck corridor stretching all the way from Mexico to the Canadian province of Manitoba.

The project is currently being considered by members of the Central North American Trade Corridor Association (CNATCA).

The road would run alongside the 1,885-mile Route 83, which runs through the centre of America (pictured) connecting Mexico in the south to Canada in the north.

A study will be carried out and communities along the route will be asked their opinion of the autonomous-vehicle corridor.

Marlo Anderson of the CNATCA, said: "One of the challenges we have here in North Dakota is that we have a lot of energy production going on right now, but not enough pipelines to carry the oil from North Dakota to its destination point.

"That means other commodities, such as grain, need to fight for space on trains. A separate corridor could relieve that pressure.

"We’re hopeful that, working with the Canadian government, the Mexican government, the United States, we can create some kind of automated way … [to] streamline that process of border crossings."

Map of Route 83

Autonomous vehicles would have to be legally allowed to drive across the US and also in Mexico and Canada. They are currently only licensed to operate on public highways in the state of Nevada.

Google has recently reported that over the past six years of testing, its self-driven cars have covered 1 million miles without causing any serious crashes or collisions.

Image: Daimler Trucks North America’s Freightliner Inspiration Truck

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