Boston Approves Self-Driving Car Test
Posted on Jun 28, 2018
The City of Boston has granted autonomous driving company nuTonomy and its parent company Aptiv permission to run autonomous vehicles on public roads across the city. The self-driving cars have been in a testing phase in the Seaport area of Boston for more than a year. Aptiv, formerly Delphi Automotive, is also conducting a self-driving test with Lyft in Las Vegas. In addition to Boston, Cambridge-based nuTonomy has been testing autonomous vehicles in Singapore. Like other autonomous driving tests, drivers will also be in the vehicles in Boston.
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How Brexit Will Impact Trucking
Posted on Jun 27, 2018
For BMW to run its factories in England, it requires 150 trucks a day to transport parts and equipment arriving from mainland Europe. It sends 118 trucks, also packed with products, to the mainland. The level of integration between England and the rest of the mainland highlights the challenge facing the auto industry if England leaves the EU without a deal, or without frictionless trade, an industry conference heard recently. Stephan Freismuth, Customs Manager, BMW Group, said whatever the future relationship looked like, any type of customs border between England and the EU would cause...
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How Driverless Cars Will Impact Cities
Posted on Jun 26, 2018
Kroger Co. is about to test whether it can drive supermarket customers away from crowded grocery aisles with a fleet of diminutive driverless cars designed to lower delivery costs. The test program could make Kroger the first US grocer to make deliveries with robotic cars that won’t have a human riding along to take control in the event something out of the ordinary occurs. Cincinnati-based Kroger is partnering with Nuro, a Silicon Valley startup founded two years ago by two engineers who worked on self-driving cars at Google. That Google project is now known as Waymo, which plans to...
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Automotive and Technology Leaders to Explore Human Impact of Self-Driving Vehicles
Posted on Jun 22, 2018
It has been well documented that the implementation of driverless vehicles will likely lead to the elimination of millions of jobs from cabbies to delivery men to truckers. Waymo, Uber, Ford and others have formed the Partnership for Transportation Innovation and Opportunity (PTIO) as a non-profit which will allow the organization to accept donations and lobby government. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 3.8 million people operate motor vehicles for their work. This includes truck driving, the most common profession in 29 US states, which employs about 1.7 million...
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Kia Debuts Plan for Autonomous Cars
Posted on Jun 18, 2018
At the 2018 Consumer Electronics Show in Asia, Kia debuted plans that included advanced connectivity and Level 4 autonomous driving technology. Level 4 technology indicates that the car drives without driver involvement. By 2025, Kia plans to adopt connected car technologies across every vehicle segment and intends to make every model a connected car by 2030. Kia also plans to introduce 16 new advanced powertrain vehicles by 2025, including a range of new hybrids, plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles.
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Michigan State University Influencing Policy Conversations
Posted on Jun 13, 2018
Recently, experts from Michigan State University assembled leaders from the academic world, business and government to discuss the implications of driverless technology and how the public can prepare for its commercialization. The workshop discussed issues beyond engineering and technology since this technology will impact the world economically, socially and culturally. The greatest hindrance discussed related to the implementation of this technology was social acceptance.
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Mobileye Will Test Autonomous Vehicles in Turin
Posted on Jun 11, 2018
Turin, home to Fiat Chrysler, will be the location for test runs of Mobileye’s autonomous vehicles. These test runs will be conducted in cooperation with Fiat, one of the partners of Intel-Mobileye, together with BMW. The Italian press reports that the company is scheduled to shortly begin thorough mapping of Turin’s roads in order to facilitate autonomous navigation in the city and its surroundings. It is still unknown which vehicles will be used for the test runs, but Mobileye is currently converting Chrysler Pacifica test cars in Jerusalem for autonomous driving. These vehicles are...
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Singapore Developed a Town for Self-Driving Buses
Posted on Jun 7, 2018
Singapore has developed a small-scale town that could take the lead in the race to supply the public with driverless transportation. The two-hectare complex, unveiled in November, has intersections, traffic lights, bus stops and pedestrian crossings, all built to the specifications that Singapore uses for its public roads. The advantage for the city-state is that the test circuit, and the information provided by companies vying to put driverless buses on Singapore’s streets, is helping it build an unrivaled database of information on the challenges and solutions that would allow the...
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Japan to Launch Self-Driving Car Service by 2020
Posted on Jun 4, 2018
With the Olympics returning to Japan in 2020, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe drafted a growth strategy that includes a launch of self-driving cars in 2020 and a full rollout in 2022. Few details were provided. However, the government hopes to build more than 100 service locations across the nation by 2030. The proposal also includes a plan to expand artificial intelligence research.
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Auto Manufacturers Believe Metal Tariffs Will Make Cars More Expensive
Posted on Jun 3, 2018
The proposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imported from the EU, Canada and Mexico will make cars more expensive, threaten jobs and slow the adoption of technologies that keep consumers safe and save fuel, US automaker trade groups said. While automakers purchase most of their steel and aluminum for US plants from domestic producers, the alliance said the tariffs will drive up prices of metals whether they are made in America or imported. GM and Ford Motor Company both have said that costlier raw materials will result in significant profit headwinds this year.
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SoftBank Invests in GM’s Cruise Automation
Posted on May 31, 2018
The SoftBank Vision Fund will be investing $2.25 billion in GM’s Cruise Automation, its self-driving car division. The company will receive an initial investment at the close of the transaction, and the remaining $1.35 billion when GM deploys its self-driving cars for commercial use. (GM has claimed that it will mass-produce autonomous cars without steering wheels or pedals by 2019.) At that point, SoftBank will own 19.6% of Cruise Automation; it has also invested in Uber, Asian ride-hailing companies, Nvidia, and Daimler.
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Drugs and Car Accidents
Posted on May 31, 2018
A recent report from the Governors Highway Safety Administration suggests that more and more people are driving with drugs in their system. In 2016, 44% of drivers who were killed in car accidents and tested for drugs tested positive, and 58% of those who tested positive had taken marijuana, opioids, or both. By comparison, only 38% of drivers in fatal accidents in 2016 had alcohol in their systems. (Nearly half of those who were alcohol-impaired also had taken drugs.) Although it should be noted that the presence of drugs does not necessarily mean that the driver was impaired, the report...
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New Trucking Forum Created To Discuss Industry Trends
Posted on May 14, 2018
International Truck is creating an industry forum, UPNEXT, where leaders of the commercial trucking sector can come together to discuss emerging trends and topics that are driving industry change. UPNEXT will include a number of initiatives intended to create a discussion among industry experts. The first of UPNEXTtrucking.com, which will store content related to pertinent issues.
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Arizona May Have The First City To Adjust Zoning Laws For Self-Driving Vehicles
Posted on May 10, 2018
In late 2017, Waymo announced they would be unleashing self-driving vehicles on the road in Chandler, Arizona. Now, while officials are still working on how to prepare for vehicles on the road, the Chandler City Council is addressing for the impact self-driving vehicles will have on parking. The ordinance, which chief city planner David de la Torre believes to be the first in the country, will allow developers to use less space for parking and more space for buildings if they meet certain accommodations for self-driving vehicles. De la Torre highlighted several examinations on future zoning...
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