US-based autonomous trucking developer TuSimple says it has opened a new facility in Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, to support the continued expansion of its autonomous freight network.
The facility will extend the company’s autonomous operations eastward, and enable operations in the Texas Triangle, which includes Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Austin. It will also, says the company, help it meet growing demand from shippers, carriers and fleets.
TuSimple says the opening places it six months ahead of schedule in completing the first element of a three-phase plan to build a nationwide autonomous freight network by 2024. It currently offers service between Phoenix and Tucson in Arizona, and El Paso, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio and Houston in Texas.
“With each new expansion of the TuSimple Autonomous Freight Network, we’re able to offer the advantages of our autonomous driving technology to new customers, while increasing value to existing customers,” said Jim Mullen, chief administrative officer at the company. “As we rapidly expand, one of our biggest challenges has been keeping up with customer demand.”
The company notes that the facility adds more than 50 transportation jobs to the local community, including safety drivers, maintenance technicians and operations personnel. Additionally, it will serve as a template for future TuSimple terminals and enable easy replication of this process as the company continues to expand nationwide.