Evaluating Automated Truck Platoon (ATP) Deployment for the Los Angeles–Inland Empire Trade Corridor Enhancement

The California Freight Mobility Plan 2020 lists the Los Angeles-Inland Empire trade corridor region as a prominent industrial hub experiencing an increase in freight flows. The California Freight Mobility Plan also regards automated truck platoon (ATP) as an emerging opportunity to minimize congestion on the trade corridor routes. Percentage change in accessibility from 2022 (“without” ATP) to 2040 (“with” ATP) is calculated for the eighteen industry sectors of the Los Angeles-Inland Empire trade corridor. The application of the accessibility formulation was carried out with data on travel time from I-710 and I-10 within Los Angeles County. The findings suggest that all the industry sectors have a very high positive percentage change in accessibility by transforming from “without” to “with” ATP deployment-based accessibility. In the vicinity of the prominent freight corridors of I-710 and I-10 within Los Angeles County, notably, the largest increase in accessibility above 90% will be observed for the industry sectors of Agriculture, Forestry, Fishing and Hunting, Health Care and Social Assistance, Finance and Insurance, Transportation and Warehousing, and Retail Trade of the Los-Angeles-Inland Empire. Thus, these findings suggest the deployment of ATP on specific freight routes to enhance and sustain economic activity across the Los Angeles-Inland Empire trade corridors.