Lidl runs an electric truck in Germany without a cab, without a driver on board

First KBA approval for a level 4 truck without a cab in daily logistics: the Einride vehicle connects a Lidl warehouse to a store up to three times a day.

Since 15 September 2026, an electric truck without a driver's cab has been delivering regular deliveries to Lidl in Germany, between the Edermünde distribution centre and a nearby store. The vehicle, supplied by the Swedish freight technology company Einride, runs in level 4 automation: neither driver nor safety operator on board, on a defined route and operating area.

The particularity lies as much in approval as in technique. This is the first approval issued by the KBA, the German Federal Motor Transport Authority, for a level 4 heavy vehicle without cab engaged in daily logistics on public roads. The truck transports dry goods, at 15 Euro pallets per rotation and up to three rotations per day, which is more than 3,000 pallets expected over the duration of the test.

The pilot runs for four months. If validated, Lidl intends to move to a multi-stop tour schedule on another site. The company operates more than 3,250 stores and 39 distribution centres in Germany, a mesh that measures what a generalisation would mean.