What would a future of driverless vehicles in Arizona look like?
Nov 12, 2017, 4:32 AM
Waymo has announced that it will soon start testing self-driving cars without someone in the driver’s seat. But what would that look like, exactly?
Thanks to a video from the company, we can see for ourselves what it might be like to ride in a driverless vehicle.
According to the demonstration, riders will simply enter the vehicle, buckle up — because safety is key — and go on their way.
The vehicles will be able to make stops on their own, adjust speeds for traffic and safely turn down roads, all without a physical driver at the helm.
Waymo announced this week that it would soon start testing driverless vehicles in the Phoenix area, but did not specify exactly when that rollout would begin.
The company has been testing self-driving cars in Phoenix and other cities for at least a year, but there was always someone in the driver’s seat, just in case. The latest round of tests moves that person to the back seat.
Waymo said computers inside the minivans will be making all of the driving decisions, including stopping for traffic lights and pedestrians. The employee can stop the vehicle if anything were to go wrong.