'Harbor pilots' guide heavy AVs on local roads

Starsky Robotics provides teleoperated control only for the most complex segments of an automated truck's trip—"getting from the distribution center to the highway, pulling up to a fuel station, backing up to a loading dock, or going through toll booths". Drivers require an additional weeklong training course to qualify for remote operation "to get used to operating a truck from in front of a monitor instead of the road." This clearly points towards a future of hybrid human-computer operation for heavy vehicles —but perhaps more importantly, it suggests that AV companies will use remote operation centers as labs to observe expert drivers to improve their self-driving techniques too. In time, teleoperation may prove to be a transitional step.