Autonomous-truck warning-beacon waiver nears Oct. 9 renewal as court challenge plays out

The waiver letting autonomous trucks use cab-mounted warning beacons instead of roadside triangles or flares expires at 11:59 p.m. on Oct. 9 — and its own terms promise it will be reissued, according to FreightWaves on Oct. 2. An Illinois cargo van operator is asking the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to break that cycle of renewals before it happens.

The waiver's terms say that absent a violation, a safety notification from a carrier, or an FMCSA finding of a safety deficiency, "this waiver will be reissued." The same clause has appeared in all four three-month waivers FMCSA has granted to Aurora since October 2025, each taking effect the day after the last expired.

Kostas Giannoulias, who hauls spot-market freight in a 2024 Ram ProMaster 2500 and represents himself, wants the court to stay the current waiver and bar any successor while his case proceeds. Justice Department lawyers for FMCSA responded Sept. 21 that the waiver "expires in less than 18 days" and that Giannoulias has not shown harm before then; he replied Sept. 22 that the promised reissuance "defeats FMCSA's suggestion that only eighteen days matter." The court had not ruled as of Oct. 2.

The waiver covers Aurora and any carrier running Level 4 automated trucks that notifies FMCSA and certifies compliance. Counting Aurora and Kodiak, the government says roughly 45 self-driving trucks operate under it; Kodiak had 20 driverless trucks deployed as of March 10, while Waabi and Stack AV had deployed none as of July 31. Aurora told FMCSA it expects more than 200 Level 4 trucks by the end of 2026.

Giannoulias argues the waiver exceeds FMCSA's statutory authority and should have gone through the exemption or pilot process, which requires public notice and comment. His reply also points to a July 8 crash near Aledo, Texas, where an Aurora truck collided with a pickup that ran a red light — no injuries, the pickup driver cited — and questions whether the beacon requirement was met while the disabled truck sat on the road.