Einride, Lidl deploy first cab-less autonomous truck in Germany

Sept 15 (Reuters) - Self-driving truck company Einride and supermarket chain Lidl have put the first cab-less autonomous truck into regular service on public roads in Germany, the companies said on Tuesday.

The level 4 driverless vehicle is transporting goods between a Lidl distribution center and a retail store under an official permit from Germany's Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA), the first authorization of its kind granted in the country.

Here are some details:

• The cab-less truck operates in daily logistics without a human driver or safety operator on board.

• Einride and Lidl plan to expand the initial route into a full multi-stop "milkrun" delivery network.

• The companies said the initiative was aimed at addressing commercial driver shortages and improving supply-chain reliability.

• Further deployments across other divisions of Lidl's parent company, the Schwarz Group, are currently under discussion.

• Germany's KBA granted the permit following an extensive safety validation process for real-world road conditions, the companies said.

(Reporting by Prathik Jayaprakash in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)