Seven-Eleven Japan (SEJ), Mitsui & Co. Distribution Group (MRG), and T2 have announced that they will jointly begin a long-distance transportation demonstration using autonomous trucks on a section of expressway between the Kanto and Kansai regions starting December 1st.
According to T2, this is the first attempt of its kind in the convenience store and supermarket industry.
<A T2 autonomous truck loading Seven-Eleven products at MRG's Saitama base>
The three companies have been considering introducing Level 2 autonomous trucks for transporting Seven-Eleven's private brand "Seven Premium" products, with a view to launching a trunk line transportation service using Level 4 autonomous trucks in fiscal year 2027.
As a first step, T2 will use its Level 2 autonomous trucks, which have been in commercial operation since July of this year, to conduct a demonstration of transportation from MRG's logistics base in Saitama Prefecture to its base in Hyogo Prefecture.
The trial will run for a total of four sessions until April 2026. The trial will verify delivery times and operations when autonomous driving is implemented.
This demonstration will also verify whether "B5 diesel," a biofuel made by mixing used cooking oil collected from local school lunches and households with diesel fuel, can be used as fuel for autonomous trucks to enable environmentally friendly transportation.
