Tele-driving Breakthrough: Canadian TMA Truck makes global debut in Amsterdam

The debut of Canada’s first tele-driven Truck Mounted Attenuator truck (TMA truck) is set to take place at Intertraffic in Amsterdam, the world’s premier international trade fair dedicated to traffic infrastructure, management, road safety, and parking.

RSG International, a global leader in road safety infrastructure recently inked a licensing agreement with Elmo, the Estonian company behind groundbreaking road legal tele-driving technology. Significant progress has been made after an early Christmas gift in the form of a Ford F550 arrived last year from Canada into Estonia, since then, the truck has been retrofitted and will soon be on display in the North American market.

"This project hasn't been without its hurdles. While we've had prior experience and were proficient in upgrading electrical vehicles in past projects, the Ford F550 posed unique challenges with its hydraulic power steering and braking system. However, after overcoming some trial and error, our team of great engineers successfully adapted our technology. Now, we possess the necessary skills and experience to retrofit an entire fleet of TMA trucks,” adds Enn Laansoo, Jr., CEO and Founder of Elmo

There will be a live presentation of the technology at Intertraffic’s demo at Booth D1 in Hall 7. The vehicle still in Tallinn Estonia will be driven remotely from Amsterdam by a licensed tele-driver under the Estonian Traffic Department.

The truck can be taken throughout the European Union for promotion until May when it will be delivered back to Canada.

“The integration of this technology would in theory allow us to remove drivers from TMA vehicles, ensuring their safety during operations. Our research and development team is eager to do our testing to see if tele-driving will be a good fit for the road and construction industry across Canada,” explains Elliot Steele, Vice President of Technology at RSG International.

The remotely controllable Ford F550 live presentation in the Netherlands is organized with Dutch Automated Mobility (DAM), a pioneer in autonomous vehicle technology. Elmo has also entered into a partnership agreement with DAM which includes promoting and licensing tele-driving technology in the Netherland market.

Elmo’s road-legal tele-driving technology has been used in public car-sharing services since 2022 and is legal in 3 countries. The company, which is developing similar technology for military use, has run testing and started road legal permitting in Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, the Netherlands, the US, and other countries.