American rail operator, Genesee & Wyoming (G&W) is planning on piloting the use of autonomous battery-powered wagons on two short lines in Georgia. Using technology from Parallel Systems, the vehicles could be used to transport containers to and from the coastal port of Savannah, moving them inland with the goal of reinvigorating rural railways and removing lorries from the roads.
G&W has applied to the Federal Railroad Administration to undertake the trial on its Georgia Central Railway and Heart of Georgia Railroad subsidiaries which covers rail lines from Savannah to Midville and nearly 500 miles of track.
Parallel Systems was founded by former Space X engineers and has been developing battery-electric rail vehicles since 2020 with its stated goal of moving freight from the road to rail. The Automated Battery-Electric Vehicles have been developed alongside an associated train control system and has been funded in part by the Department of Energy (DOE)...
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