Autonomous trucks: an affront to masculinity?

ABSTRACT Autonomous (or self-driving) vehicle technology has become a commercial reality in a number of cars being driven on public roads around the globe. However, this technology is not only confined to cars. It is equally applicable to trucks and there is speculation that it will be autonomous trucks that will hit the roads first because they operate in ‘a less complicated traffic environment’ and are therefore ideal starting points for the coming automated vehicle market.1 For example, in May 2015, authorities granted a license to Daimler to test its self-driving trucks on public roads in the US State of Nevada.2 These use a series of different technologies, including video cameras and radar, which, when applied in an incremental way, allow drivers to take breaks, although there must always be a qualified driver at the wheel.3 It is clear to see the benefits of self-driving trucks to trucking companies, who could use them to transport goods across much longer distances and without all of the scheduled breaks than is presently possible with human truck drivers. But what about the impact on the image of the retained drivers themselves? Traditionally, truck drivers have been men and this representation is well-entrenched in a variety of media. Does the introduction of self-driving truck technology represent an attack on the masculinist truck driving culture as portrayed in TV shows such as ‘Ice Road Truckers’ or ‘Outback Truckers’. If so, is such a change to be encouraged or is the historical image (though objectionable to some) worthy of protection? Given that self-driving trucks could be available for purchase from the middle of the coming decade, the socio-legal aspects of self-driving truck technology will be reflected on and the degree to which this issue can be contemplated at law addressed.