Volvo Goes Driverless in Q1 2027, Ag Retailers Fight UP-NS Merger, & TIA Seeks Broker Clarity | The Morning Minute

In this episode, we kick things off with a massive milestone for autonomous trucking as ⁠Volvo Autonomous Solutions plans to remove safety drivers from its trucks in early 2027⁠ and begin fully driverless operations on U.S. highways. The company currently runs commercial freight daily in Texas with safety drivers aboard, but projects it will have over three hundred autonomous trucks operating by the end of 2027, with industrial scaling beginning in 2028 and revenue approaching three billion dollars within five years. Over on the rails, ⁠agricultural retailers are raising serious alarm bells about the proposed Union Pacific-Norfolk Southern mega-merger⁠ and its impact on the agribusiness sector. The Agricultural Retailers Association, which represents more than five thousand retail locations nationwide, warns that freight rail rates have risen over forty percent in the past twenty years—seventy percent faster than truck rates—and that further consolidation among the four Class I carriers controlling ninety percent of rail traffic directly threatens supply chain reliability for moving fertilizer, chemicals, and fuel to America's farms. Finally, we explore how ⁠the Transportation Intermediaries Association is pushing FMCSA for federal clarity on approved carrier selection standards⁠ following the landmark Montgomery versus Caribe Transport II Supreme Court decision. With more than ninety percent of authorized motor carriers currently operating without an FMCSA safety rating, the TIA is requesting a federal rulemaking that would establish objective criteria to help brokers and shippers determine whether the use of a given carrier is reasonable based on demonstrable safety performance. ⁠Follow the FreightWaves NOW Podcast⁠ ⁠Other FreightWaves Shows⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices