An autonomous route from South Carolina to Texas, which transports Bridgestone tires, now moves drop freight from Atlanta, Georgia, to Dallas to reduce empty miles.
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Dive Brief:
- J.B. Hunt Transport Services, Kodiak Robotics and Bridgestone Americas expanded their collaboration to include additional weekly deliveries along its South Carolina to Texas route, according to an Aug. 7 press release.
- Using the J.B. Hunt 360box program, the carrier can identify shippers with live and drop freight needs from the Dallas area to Atlanta, mitigating empty miles by securing capacity for the return trip to Georgia from Texas.
- “Working closely with Kodiak and Bridgestone, we were able to deliver a complementary solution that integrates autonomous technology with day-to-day operations while also solving backhaul challenges,” said Nick Hobbs, J.B. Hunt COO and president of contract services.
Dive Insight:
J.B. Hunt is one of the many carriers leveraging technology to find operational efficiencies amid a persistently weak freight environment.
The combined use of driverless vehicles handling the longer trips and J.B. Hunt drivers managing trailer transfers and deliveries helped drive efficiencies across the carrier’s trucking operations.
The additional deliveries from Dallas to Atlanta build on J.B. Hunt’s original route connecting Bridgestone’s plant in Graniteville, South Carolina, to Kodiak’s port in Villa Rica, Georgia, according to the press release. That load is then transported by an autonomous truck, overseen by two safety drivers, 750 miles from Georgia to Kodiak’s terminal in Lancaster, Texas.
A driver-operated J.B. Hunt tractor-trailer transports the load the final 50 miles from Lancaster to Bridgestone’s distribution center in Roanoke, Texas.
The partnership recently surpassed 50,000 accident-free long-haul miles between South Carolina and Texas, while also achieving 100% on-time pick and delivery, the companies said, the companies said.
“It’s a great example of how our mode-neutral approach can leverage multiple service offerings to produce efficient, value-driven solutions unique to our customers’ needs,” Hobbs said.
Bridgestone, a dedicated contract customer of J.B. Hunt, announced an investment and partnership with Kodiak in 2021. The tiremaker’s tire-sensing technology is incorporated into the autonomous vehicle developer’s safety features.