Translation. Region: Russian Federation –
Source: KAMAZ – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.
Today, March 31, as part of the "Unmanned Logistics Corridors" project, with the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, unmanned KAMAZ trucks launched their operations along the M-12 "Vostok" highway.
The ceremony to launch driverless trucks on the M-12 federal highway was also attended by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Savelyev, Russian Minister of Transport Andrei Nikitin, KAMAZ Deputy General Director for Government Relations Mikhail Matasov, representatives of businesses, government agencies, and freight forwarders.
The President of the Russian Federation emphasized KAMAZ's role in economic development and thanked the team and management of the leading domestic truck manufacturer for this. "Despite the known difficulties, which arise for reasons we know, KAMAZ remains firmly on its feet, developing, and participating in major modern projects such as this one. All the best to you! I wish you success!" Vladimir Putin remarked.
Highly automated KAMAZ vehicles (hereinafter referred to as HATS) from the MAYAK-2 project have been deployed on the M-12 highway as part of the expansion of the experimental legal regime (ELR) for the "Unmanned Logistics Corridors" project. The increased range expands logistics capabilities for transport companies and increases the versatility of cargo delivery.
As a reminder, the first stage of this federal project began in June 2023, with three unmanned KAMAZ long-haul trucks deployed on the M-11 Neva highway. Subsequently, the project's scope was expanded: in August 2024, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a decree authorizing the launch of unmanned trucking on the Central Ring Road (CKAD) in the Moscow region and the M-12 Vostok highway. In April 2025, KAMAZ participated in the launch of unmanned traffic on the A113 (CKAD). Currently, 18 KAMAZ unmanned trucks are successfully operating on the M-11 and CKAD. The trucks transport real cargo, with a test engineer in the cab monitoring the process. During testing on the M-11 Neva and Central Ring Road highways, unmanned KAMAZ trucks traveled approximately 6 million kilometers and transported 732,000 cubic meters of cargo.
The main difference between the Mayak-1 and Mayak-2 VATS systems is their sanctions-resistant production. For example, the company's engineers replaced the AM side radars with OEM ones, which increased the speed determination accuracy from 0.6 to 0.16, increased the object recognition range from 45 m to 80 m, and improved the communication system.
During the experimental legal regime program, the company significantly improved its VATS technologies. Specifically, the lane keeping algorithm was refined and adjusted, the machine vision recognition range was increased from 80 m to 120 m, the radar vision range was increased from 50 m to 80 m, the lidar vision range was increased from 60 m to 120 m, and the lane detection range was increased from 16 m to 100 m.
"The introduction of an experimental legal regime on the M-11 Neva highway gave us the opportunity to launch highly automated KAMAZ vehicles on public roads and now allows us to test our developments in real-world conditions. Significant progress has been made over the past year. Today, the company's engineers are working on the next improved version of the vehicle – the MAYAK-3 – which will bring the project as close as possible to serial production. It incorporates redundant controls for the computer, steering, and braking systems. A sensor cleaning system has been added, which is especially important in the spring and fall. A semitrailer has been integrated into the integrated vision system. We plan to equip highly automated KAMAZ vehicles with "smart" semitrailers equipped with sensor elements. This will improve the safety of road trains and provide the opportunity to significantly expand the functionality of driverless trucks," commented Sergey Kogogin, CEO of KAMAZ PJSC.
KAMAZ remains the only Russian manufacturer of highly automated vehicles based on its own truck chassis. The launch on the M-12 demonstrates the company's and the country's technological readiness for the transition to driverless transport.
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