No driver: Fully autonomous cars now navigate some roads in Austin, Texas
AUSTIN, Texas – Truly driverless cars – this time with no human drivers ready to take over in case of emergency – are now cruising around Austin.
Pittsburgh-based technology company Argo AI says it has begun operating its autonomous test vehicles without human safety drivers in Austin. The company is also testing the driverless vehicles in Miami.
Argo AI has been operating in Austin since 2019 in partnership with Ford Motor Co. Ford has been deploying prototypes in Austin to establish the city as a proving ground for autonomous vehicle technology. To further test its autonomous technology in Austin, Argo AI and Ford have since established a partnerships with ridehailing service Lyft and and with retail giant Walmart, with the vehicles being part of Walmart's delivery service.
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No human behind the wheel
However, all those vehicles had humans ready to take over in case something went wrong. Now, Argo AI is testing a fleet of vehicles with no human behind the wheel. The company called it an important milestone in its plan to bring together the technology, operational resources and partners needed to grow its autonomous vehicle business.
Bryan Salesky, founder and CEO of Argo AI, said the company "is first to go driverless in two major American cities, safely operating amongst heavy traffic, pedestrians and bicyclists in the busiest of neighborhoods. From day one, we set out to tackle the hardest miles to drive – in multiple cities – because that’s where the density of customer demand is, and where our autonomy platform is developing the intelligence required to scale it into a sustainable business.”
For now, only Argo AI employees will be passengers in the driverless vehicles, and the passengers will be able to stop or trigger the vehicle to pull over in case of emergency, the company said. Argo said the vehicles are primarily operating downtown, as well as in east and south Austin.
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Autonomous rules of the road
The company also will also continue to operate autonomous vehicles with a safety driver behind the wheel as part of its pilot program with Walmart. It also plans to soon do the same with Lyft.
Last year, Ford said it plans to scale up to at least 1,000 autonomous vehicles on the Lyft network over the next five years across multiple markets, starting with a small rollout in Miami in 2021 followed by Austin this year.
Last year, Argo AI also announced that self-driving cars would soon be delivering Austin-area Walmart orders in a defined area.
In Texas, autonomous vehicles are regulated under a 2017 law that allows them to operate on Texas roads without a driver inside. Prior to that, there was no law prohibiting autonomous vehicles. Companies including Uber have tested on Texas roads since 2015.
Texas law requires driverless vehicles used on highways to be capable of following all traffic laws, have insurance just like other cars and be equipped with video recording devices. The manufacturers are also considered responsible for any broken traffic laws or collisions.