Nikola Motor Company (Nikola), a developer of heavy-duty battery-electric vehicles (BEV) and fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) trucks, has partnered with the autonomous truck manufacturer, Plus, to integrate “PlusDrive," a safety system, into its Nikola Tre BEVs and hydrogen-electric vehicles. 

PlusDrive is a Level 2 autonomous advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) with functions such as lane keeping, automatic emergency braking, staying centered in a lane, lane changes, merges, stop-and-go traffic, and nudging. 

Nikola vehicles equipped with PlusDrive will be capable of incident detection via cameras used together with short-range radar and Lidar. The vehicles will also be equipped with an advanced sensor suite that will assist the driver in safely interacting with others. 

The PlusDrive system will only operate on the highway; when off the highway, the Nikola vehicles will maintain the ability to detect obstacles and traffic in blind spots. 

The first Nikola trucks equipped with the PlusDrive technology should be available by the end of 2024. Multiple fleets, including PGT Trucking and Christenson Transportation, have agreed to pilot the initial Nikola PlusDrive-enabled trucks.