Pilot Company opens first truckport for autonomous trucks
Published on: Aug 18, 2023
The retailer has partnered with Kodiak Robotics to inaugurate the site which will serve as a launching and landing point for the vehicles in the Atlanta area.
Pilot Company and Kodiak Robotics have opened their inaugural truckport, located at the retailer’s travel center in Villa Rica, Georgia. The site will be used by Kodiak to launch and land autonomous trucks and will serve as a convenient hub for drivers to pick up and drop off first- and last-mile deliveries.
The truckport will support the self-driving trucking company’s 18,000-mile-long autonomous deployment network. It will also serve as an eastern satellite hub for the firm's network, while the company's Dallas-Fort Worth hub will continue to serve as the main terminal for its autonomous truck fleet.
"This partnership, combined with Kodiak's flexible technology stack, enables our scalable, asset-light approach to building our truckport network. The freight lane between Dallas and Atlanta is critical to the nation's supply chain and economy, and this truckport enables us to refine our operations model as we continue to grow," said Don Burnette, Founder and CEO of Kodiak Robotics.
Additional comprehensive services at the truckport will include refueling at the Pilot Travel Center, light maintenance, and pre-trip inspections, including Enhanced Inspections specifically designed for self-driving trucks.
The news follows the August 2022 investment in Kodiak by Pilot Company which also saw the travel center brand joined its Board of Directors. Kodiak and Pilot are exploring further expansion within the company's national travel center network.
