Why the ‘Driverless’ Narrative Is Failing the Freight Industry

27 January 2026

Toby Patrick

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To many people, the thought of stepping into a driverless vehicle or being surrounded by them would seem risky. Yet despite this, according to many, the future of freight is driverless. But if we are moving towards a driverless future, we’re doing so more slowly than was expected. Is this an us problem, or is it a technology problem?

Modern silver train on tracks in an urban area, with mountains in the background. Visible power lines and a sign in the foreground.

Fear Before Function

There’s a lot of talk about driverless technology, but the action doesn’t match the talk. If we were to go back to the start of the millennium, I think most opinion leaders would agree that we’d be surrounded by driverless cars, trains, trucks and planes. Even in today’s current state of affairs, driverless vehicles seem to make the news regularly, but how many businesses are actually using the technology? How many people have stepped into a driverless vehicle? The numbers are pretty low, and there still appears to be a massive gap between marketing and adoption.

The Skill Shortage

The industry also appears to be at somewhat of a crossroads. Fewer people are undergoing transport training out of fear of a driverless future, but driverless technology isn’t at the point where it can replace traditional transport.

Not only does this contribute towards a driver shortage, but it has also contributed to a skill shortage in terms of developing driverless tech. While some are wary of entering the industry as a driver, others are viewing it from the opposite side, hesitant to step into technology-based roles in case the industry doesn’t come into fruition.

This is leaving the industry with an all-around shortage, and it may explain why the vision of a driverless future hasn’t taken off. In short, the industry is in desperate need of a recruitment-driven rebrand that attracts skilled drivers, engineers and startups to help transition us from one era to the next.

The Reality

We often fall into the trap of assuming that automation and robotics replace human jobs. The reality is that advances in technology often create new jobs and opportunities. If we are to achieve a driverless future, we’ll still need humans for quality assurance, legislation, maintenance and decision making.

Who Can Actually Build ‘Driverless’?

To bring the vision of driverless freight to life, it will require a first mover to prove that the vision is actually achievable. Often, this responsibility falls to a billion-dollar company to fund the research & development, infrastructure and marketing. Until we reach that point, driverless freight is likely to be beyond the reach of small businesses, which ultimately delays driverless freight from becoming the new normal.

Signs of Progress

On the subject of driverless becoming the new normal, it is positive to see signs of progress. Visible progress includes the driverless cabs that are becoming increasingly normal in places like Las Vegas. Obviously, driverless freight comes with far more complexity, but it does at least stress that society’s confidence in driverless vehicles is on the up.

Final Thoughts

It doesn’t seem to be a question of if we will adopt driverless transport, but more a question of when. And we are certainly moving towards this, albeit slowly. With the likes of Tesla ploughing millions into driverless cars and driverless trains becoming increasingly common in some parts of the world, surely it’s only a matter of time until driverless freight becomes the new norm.

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How do you approach your marketing?

Do you pull ideas straight from your head? Or do you do your research, looking at what content/messages your competitors produce, at buying trends, popular interests, etc.? Do you find inspiration from the people/things around you?

The thing is, for most small to medium-sized businesses, there’s only so much time they have available. When it comes to the content they create across their social media profiles and website, it’s just so much quicker and easier to run with their first idea.

Is this the right way to do things, though? By just going with anything because time is scarce, how can you be sure that you’re actually producing content your audience wants to digest?

With any marketing method or technique, you should know who you’re talking to, i.e. who your ideal audience is. It’s worth remembering, however, that your audience may change slightly or waver from time to time—certainly, consumer trends/the things people talk about/get excited about move constantly. As new things emerge—whether this is a programme, piece of technology, news events or whatever—a shift in your audience’s mindset may arise, or a new opportunity. Pushing the same old, same old, will not only show your audience that you’re not really trying to capture their attention, it will also prove a huge waste of time.

There’s no doubt that creating videos, images, articles and social media posts that people actually want to see requires a little research that will need carving from your already-busy schedule, but if you get much more engagement from your followers for your efforts, surely this is worth it?

Think of how much 2020 has seen already: the coronavirus, various high-profile companies going to the wall, the fascination over TikTok…think of your service/product and the problem it solves and how you could link it to something people are actively using, reading about, or searching for across the net.

Another tool you can use is your analytics. These statistics will tell you which of your previous posts caught people’s attention more than other content you may have put out. You will be able to see what you said that had people talking in the past, and perhaps you may also see what you could change about the less-engaging content that would make it more appealing; repurposing content will allow you to claw a little bit of time back.

Lastly, there’s no shame in actually asking your audience what they want to see. You may be surprised that what they tell you is miles away from what you think, but that’s human beings for you—we’re changeable, and unpredictable, and most of us have no clue at all about what we want!

Marketing done half-heartedly is not much better than no marketing at all. There’s actually so much you could learn from your audience/customers from opening dialogue with them; it’s just not worth thinking for them, as more often than not, you’ll probably be way off the mark.

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