How 'Self-Driving' Trucks Connected the Australian Outback
The trucks that roam the highways of the Australian outback are a lot bigger than the average 18-wheeler. Instead of towing one container, these road trains, as Australians refer to them, pull at least three self-tracking semitrailers behind them, which follow each other like train carriages. The trailers are packed with heavy goods—cattle, gas, coal, cars—and sent roaring through the continent’s interior to deliver supplies to coastal cities.
Fully loaded, road trains weigh up to 120 tons, and materialize on the shimmering horizon of outback roads as great mechanical beasts. As they pass at 70 miles per hour, you can feel the air velocity generated by the machine trying to suck you under the rig.
Road trains are as much a part of the outback as
