Google Experiments With Self-Driven Cars In Washington

Google has started to test self-driven cars in Washington and appealed for exemption from laws for testing purposes.

There is a new trend in the industry where all tech and automotive giants are experimenting and researching on self-driven cars. Alphabet Inc. is among those companies that now wish to enter the automotive industry through cars of similar nature.

Google plans to come up with autonomous cars since a long time. Recently, news circulated that the company was experimenting with autonomous cars in several states in the United States; and now, it is experimenting with self-driven cars in Washington.

A few weeks ago, the search engine giant started to experiment with Lexus RX450h SUV, which was driven to a few square miles in the North Kirkland region that helped the management to chalk out an extensive map of the streets in the vicinity. According to the tech company, their self-driven software has already spanned above 1.4 million miles in terms of autonomous driving.

This is a great achievement in itself for the company since it has covered a huge distance and the results have been promising, which indicates that the technology has the potential to make a difference in the automotive world.

The Governor of Washington, Mr. Jay Inslee, appreciated the tests by saying in a Google statement, "We're looking forward to seeing the cars on the road and understanding more about how self-driving cars might someday improve safety and provide traffic relief.”

The previous month, United States Department of Transportation claimed that it might alter some transportation laws so that the operation of driverless cars becomes possible in the country. The idea is to pace up the ratio of driverless cars. It is indeed noteworthy that the local authoritative bodies are optimistic about this technology and are assisting the tech businesses in its roll out.

If the local government does not support such initiatives, the propagation of technology is actually not possible. The efforts of the Transportation Department in the U.S. are commendable and progressive.

Popular automotive giants and tech companies governed by Google are striving hard to develop and sell cars that can drive on their own. However, a major concern by these companies is that the present safety rules are hindering the process of testing, which will create obstacles in the launch of such cars.

The United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has acknowledged the automotive organizations that the authority is devoted to exempt almost 2,500 cars all over the industry from a ‘bunch’ of safety rules for a time span of two years. This initiative can certainly help Google to bring its self-driven cars on the United States roads.

Safety regulators will come up with a written set of guidelines for self-driven cars in the coming six months reported Transportation Secretary, Anthony Foxx, previous month.