Self-driving trucks between Sweden and Norway

On September 25th, the Swedish company Einride achieved an unprecedented milestone: the first international border crossing by a fully autonomous, electric, cab-less truck, between Sweden and Norway.

The event, which marked a world first, took place at the Ørje border crossing, where the heavy-duty vehicle, with no driver on board, crossed the border thanks to the collaboration and support of the Norwegian customs authorities.

Crossing national borders remains one of the most complex challenges for autonomous vehicles, mainly due to differences in regulations and procedures between countries. To facilitate and simplify this process, Einride integrated its management system with the Norwegian digital customs platform Digitoll, through its collaboration with technology partner Q-Free. This integration allowed customs formalities and goods declarations to be completed in advance and fully automated, without the need for human intervention at the border.

This test, conducted on behalf of PostNord — a company that handles around 200 million shipments annually in the Nordic region — is part of the broader European Modi project, co-funded by the European Union. The project aims to accelerate the introduction and spread of autonomous heavy freight transport across the continent.

Similar demonstrations, such as those recently held at the ports of Antwerp and Felixstowe in early September, confirm that logistics and port areas are ideal environments for testing and implementing these cutting-edge technologies.