IPFS News Link • Transportation
Cruise is doubling down on shared autonomous rides with new COVID protocols
• https://www.theverge.com, By Andrew J. HawkinsCruise, the self-driving car company owned by General Motors, is doubling down on the Origin, its steering wheel-and-pedal-less autonomous people mover introduced late last year. With the COVID-19 pandemic discouraging many people from using shared ride services, the company unveiled new safety protocols intended to keep people socially distant during trips and the vehicle sanitized between fares.
Cruise is also applying for permission from the federal government to mass-produce the Origin. The vehicle's lack of traditional human controls means that the company will need an exemption from the federal government's motor vehicle safety standards, which require vehicles to have a steering wheel and pedals. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) only grants 2,500 such exemptions a year. (There is legislation to increase that number to 25,000, but it is currently stalled in the Senate.)