Einride and EASE Logistics have moved two SAE Level 4 autonomous electric trucks into daily freight operations between EASE warehouses in Marysville, Ohio.
The trucks are cab-less and operate without anyone on board. They run scheduled routes on EASE property and local public roads, carrying freight between EASE facilities. A remote operator monitors each truck off-site and can intervene when needed. The service began last month and has been generating operational data on safety, reliability and efficiency.
“This deployment reflects the maturity of our purpose-built autonomous stack, combining driverless operation with remote oversight to run safely in real-world operations,” said Henrik Green, chief technology officer at Einride.
The deployment sits inside the Truck Automation Corridor Project, an $8.8 million multi-year initiative launched in 2021 by the Ohio Department of Transportation, DriveOhio and the Indiana Department of Transportation. The project centers on major state routes in Ohio and Indiana, where the agencies are deploying and studying varying levels of truck automation. They are watching for better safety numbers, lower fuel use and emissions, and more efficient freight movement, plus fleets that finish the project willing to work with automation.
For EASE, the Marysville route is the company’s third autonomous trucking deployment with DriveOhio, placing it among a small number of U.S. logistics providers running more than one autonomous freight platform in live, day-to-day operations.
“EASE believes in leading through action and putting innovation to work in real-world operations,” said Peter Coratola, Jr., president and chief executive officer of EASE Logistics.
Einride and EASE will use operational data from daily service, including miles driven, loads moved and uptime, to guide the next phase of the deployment and to inform discussions with ODOT, INDOT and prospective logistics partners about scaling autonomous freight across the region.
