News / LX Pantos US coast-to-coast self-drive trucking route now a round-trip

Mars Auto trucks

South Korean 3PL LX Pantos has expanded its autonomous trucking route across the US into a round-trip operation system.

LX Pantos initially trucked Hyundai Mobis automotive parts from the west coast to the east coast, using Class 8 self-driving trucks operated by compatriot haulier start-up Mars Auto.

Satisfied with the safety of autonomous trucks, and to reduce empty mileage, LX Pantos is now trucking construction materials between US coasts in the opposite direction.

Through this collaboration, the route across the US has increased from approximately 3,500km one-way to a more than 7,000km round-trip, allowing Mars Auto and LX Pantos to break their own record for the world’s longest autonomous transport route.

The firms said that, with cargo trucked both ways, they will improve their empty mileage rate – the industry average being around about 16.7%, but they anticipate they can reduce this to approximately 5%.

LX Pantos department head Lee Beom-in said: “We plan to develop a new transportation model by combining the potential of autonomous driving technology, verified in actual transportation sites.“

The number of autonomous trucks doing deliveries in the US is unknown, but believed to be fewer than 100, as self-driving has not taken off dramatically.

Mars Auto did not disclose how many autonomous trucks it operates, but claims to have accumulated 1.2m autonomous miles. The company, which also counts CJ Logistics among its clients, entered the US market in 2024, retrofitting three trucks with its technology.

CEO Park Il-Soo said: “This is a case confirming the potential for expanding safer and more economical autonomous driving within the North American logistics ecosystem.”

LX Pantos’s move to ship more goods on self-driving trucks is also in line with the US government’s BUILD America 250 Act, introduced in May, calling for the commercialisation of autonomous trucks.

Building Unrivalled Infrastructure and Long-term Development for America’s 250th Act is primarily a five-year surface transportation reauthorisation bill, covering highways, bridges, transit, rail, and freight programmes. It includes the first federal framework for self-driving trucks, covering safety standards and a performance-based regulation.

Next week The Loadstar will publish an interview in association with LX Pantos, in which president and CEO Yong Ho Lee discusses shifting supply chains, growth opportunities in key markets, and the role of technology in the future of logistics