Trucker with a CS degree here. I'm very skeptical of the feasibility of autonomous highway trucks that can drive outside very tightly defined parameters or ideal situations. That being said, it just occurred to me, how will these trucks react to or let alone detect tire blowouts or break failures/fires on the trailers?
Edit: I know from experience that getting a project to what we think is 95% there is relatively easy compared to the last 5% that make the product/project 100% viable. The real life testing will kill you if the edge cases don't. (I don't mean that literally, although...)
CS came first. At the end I had a small internet business at home that chained me to the computers. An alarm about a defective RAID just as I was starting a short vacation triggered the career change. I couldn't see myself go back into a cubicle and I always liked to drive so I decided on the spot to become a trucker. So I sold the business, took a course, pass the license and here I am 15 years later, 100 pounds lighter because I'm no longer behind a desk getting fat. I'm doing local and regional deliveries with a 53ft and have a 20km bike commute. I probably make 1/3 of what a computer job would pay but to me money is not everything. To tell the whole truth, I was simply burned out. I just came back to programming on personal projects just a couple of years ago and I love it.
As for comparing industries, I don't know, how can you compare when one has really small margins, has no technology besides tracking and logistics, is really change averse and has basically an un-educated cheap labor force and the other has hopefully good margins, a well paid skilled labor force and creates technology.
One thing for sure, a good or a bad boss is the same in both industries lol.
Yeah, and what about theft? If the truck is programmed to stop if there's a person in front (one would hope so), then how can you stop thieves lifting the whole thing?
How is that prevented now? Also, a relatively common form of theft now is the human driver absconding with the trailer. Also, a self driving truck would presumably be generating high resolution 3d scans of any potential hijacker.
people are generally a lot less brazen towards other humans compared to how they interact with automations or things that are remotely surveilled rather than with a human attendant.
trains with unarmed guards generally don't get robbed.
Edit: I know from experience that getting a project to what we think is 95% there is relatively easy compared to the last 5% that make the product/project 100% viable. The real life testing will kill you if the edge cases don't. (I don't mean that literally, although...)