Ford brings autonomous cars to Austin, Texas



[ad_1]

The builder and Argo AI partner will start mapping Downtown and East Austin over the next few months with manual-driven vehicles. Ford will gradually increase the size of the coverage area and its fleet of autonomous cars, to launch a vast service of taxis and autonomous deliveries in 2021.

Sherif Marakby, CEO of the Autonomous Vehicles Division, wrote in a blog post that Ford will have to report on "intense pedestrian activity, especially cyclists and mopeds." Scooters are particularly interesting because they are essentially motorized pedestrians, with a fast and unique speed … movement behavior that needs to be taken into account Austin has more scooter activity than we have seen in other cities where we are currently testing. "

Austin seems to be an ideal testing ground for vehicles. "As the population of our region is about to double in the next 20 to 25 years, it is clear that we need to rethink how our right of way is used if we want people to move around our city. ", said Mayor Steve. Adler said in a statement.

The Metropolitan Planning Organization of the Capital Region predicts that vehicle use in the region could double by 2040, but highway capacity will only increase by 15%. Combined with the fact that nearly 75% of Austin residents commute solo, it's a recipe for a nightmare of congestion. Ford suggests that autonomous vehicles will offer people more options to get around, which could reduce traffic jams.

[ad_2]

Source link