For all the excitement surrounding autonomous vehicles, most of the attention has focused on what the technology will mean for consumers who might finally be freed from the tyranny of the commute. No less revolutionary is what the technology might mean for mass transit and trucking.

Granted, robo-trucks and self-driving buses aren't nearly so sexy as, say, Audi's gorgeous autonomous A7 or as friendly as Google's cute self-driving gumdrop of a car. But the technology is here, now, and proving itself in real-world testing.

Just last week, a Mercedes-Benz Actros big-rig equipped with Daimler's "highway pilot" system made the 15-mile run from Denkendorf to Stuttgart, Germany, on highway A8, staying within its lane and maintaining a safe following distance. That test followed an announcement by Chinese manufacturer Yutong that its autonomous bus handled 26 traffic signals, several lane changes and at least one passing maneuver during a 20-mile drive between Zhengzhou and Kaifeng.

Yutong hasn't revealed much its technology, but says the bus uses laser, radar, and camera systems on each side of the vehicle. Daimler's autopilot system has a stereoscopic camera to read lane lines and short- and long-range radar to scan the road for obstacles up to 800 feet ahead. The truck made its debut on public roads in Nevada in May.

As impressive as these tests are, they pale compared to what more advanced prototypes can do. Google's cars have racked up more than 1 million miles on public roads using technology so sophisticated it can, for example, recognize a cyclist's hand signals. Audi's prototype A7 drove 500 miles without any input from the human at the wheel. And Volvo plans to put 100 customers in cars with autonomous capabilities and turn them loose on public roads in Sweden by 2017.

But the news from Daimler and Yutong highlights the potentially momentous role this technology could play in the commercial and transit sectors.

Lives, Time, & Money

The benefits of self-driving trucks and buses, like for autonomous tech in general, focus primarily on saving lives, time, and money.

In 2013, 280 buses were involved in fatal accidents that killed 310 people. About 4,000 people die each year in crashes involving trucks, most of them in passenger cars. According to a 2009 study, 71 percent of large truck crashes occurred while the truck driver was distracted. Autonomous systems that will support or supplant human drivers will not text, fumble for cigarettes, or talk on the phone. They will not get stressed, tired, or drunk.

Beyond the lives lost, large truck and bus crashes cost $87 billion in damages in 2013, according to the DOT. Active safety features that do things like keep a vehicle within its lane and brake automatically to avoid crashes already improve safety. Full automation almost certainly will build on that.

There are economic upsides here beyond avoiding costly crashes. The trucking industry faces a serious and mounting shortage of drivers, while America's increasing demand for instant gratification has made online shopping and almost instant delivery widespread. Amazon's package delivery drones aren't coming anytime soon, but it isn't hard to see the tech giant, and shipping companies like FedEx, embracing robo-trucks.

Drivers are easier to come by in the bus biz, says Richard Bishop, an industry consultant who once ran the US Department of Transportation vehicle-highway automation program. That's because the job's more pleasant: Most routes are local, so drivers don't spend long periods away from home.

Still, there are economic benefits to going autonomous. "It's for greater operational efficiency," Bishop says. You can save on driver pay, or increase service. Autonomous vehicles drastically cut down on laggy human response times, so you can run vehicles closer together.

Many cities are looking at bus rapid transit, a hybrid service in which buses have dedicated lanes and make fewer stops, to cover long distances quickly. Some places may not have enough room to add a full extra lane, Bishop says, but a self-driving vehicle could operate within a lane barely its width.

Such things already are coming. Within two years, the airport in Brussels plans to launch a pilot project using driverless buses to carry passengers and employees to, from, and around the airport. And Daimler is currently testing its autonomous truck technology on two continents.

Rational Economics

Commercial and passenger applications of autonomous technology most likely will advance in tandem, Bishop says, but the trucks and buses have an advantage: They exist to make their owners money, and technology that increases profits will be hard to resist.

During the past decade, active safety features have been added to about 100,000 trucks in the US, Bishop says. The economic benefits—less money lost to crashes—should encourage the trucking industry to adopt autonomous vehicles. The potential improvements in safety should push regulators to embrace and promote the technology.

So it may not be long before you can hang out in your PJs as a robo-truck pulls up to deliver your groceries. And when you finally get dressed for that trip to Atlantic City, there may be no one at the wheel of the bus taking you there from NYC.