Detroit to launch free autonomous shuttle service

[Lowell]

"Look ma, no hands"? This sounds like fun. When I was in San Francisco last autumn I wanted to take an autonomous taxi but the waiting list was too long and complicated. So now I can get my first ride in the D. [And not to worry there will be A safety operator will also be present throughout the pilot.]

Detroit is launching its free autonomous shuttle service, which will run a two-way route, to the public next week.

The pilot program of “The Connect” is free and will begin running the 10.8-mile route at 7 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 14, from Corktown, cutting through downtown, to the East Jefferson riverfront, and back.

Shuttles are expected to arrive every 10-15 minutes during peak hours, according to the city. The Michigan Department of Transportation will fund $1.67 million toward a fifth shuttle.

Shuttles will be manually operated in the beginning for a smooth performance and to ensure they are adapting to Detroit's urban environment. More functions will be added, including fully autonomous driving later this year through a partnership with Perrone Robotics. A safety operator will also be present throughout the pilot. The pilot will launch with four all-electric, wheelchair- accessible Ford E-Transit shuttles.

Operating hours are from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday. Riders can track the shuttles in real time at theconnect.liftango.com, which will be accessible on mobile devices. A video tutorial and user guides will be available when service opens on the official website.

[Richard]

Do you ever follow Waymo,they are in 25 cities now ,when the police pull them over they have to talk into an embedded microphone to some controller in another city.

They have racked up over 7 million miles,that’s a lot considering they have a 40 mile circle,but they are still having problems with avoidance issues,like potholes or road debris,they just keep on.

It appears that they are going to be more mainstream than EVs themselves.

But I do not know, it’s Google and the facial recognition and data bases,in this case of it serves a need and the city can save money without having to employ people it’s probably good,maybe not so much for bus drivers.

But if you think about it,they will probably end up expanding it to regular bus routes,school bus routes,even trash pick up routes in the future.

Will not even need people anymore ,just a bunch of autonomous things scurrying about doing autonomous things.

[Danny]

Ah Johnny Cabs

[Jimaz]

Ah Johnny Cabs

That clip was hilarious — and prophetic.

Arnold applies the emergency manual override. Automatics are for weaklings.

Total Recall - Johnny Cab

[expatriate]

Well I took a ride in this yesterday from end to end just for the fun of it and found it quite interesting. It was only the second day of operation and I was the only passenger for most of it. Both drivers were very engaging and were able to explain a lot of the workings. They use all electric Ford Transit Van that was quite comfortable. Apparently they will not be fully autonomous for another few months, but will ALWAYS have a "driver" along that can intervene if necessary. There is no android ap that I could find and the web version is not great. The 10-15 waits were not in effect yesterday and I had to wait a Michigan Central for closer to 40 minutes, but it was a nice day hang in Roosevelt Park. The driver followed a pre-designed route in order to train the robot which will eventually take over. It all worked pretty well with only one passenger, but I question how it will work fully loaded with six, considering the driver must exit the vehicle to open the passenger door manually at each stop. I can see this as being a pretty off-putting prospect for potential. drivers. It is worth taking a ride in this experimental service just to imagine its potential.

[Jimaz]

Driverless Waymo pulled over by Phoenix Police

This is something you probably didn't consider: self-driving Waymo cars can get pulled over by police.

In fact, it happened last month in Phoenix, and it was caught on body camera.

It's not every day you see a Phoenix Police officer pulling over a driverless car. But, that's what happened on June 19 after the officer observed a Waymo going haywire in traffic.

"I couldn't help but come over here just out of morbid curiosity. I thought maybe there was a passenger," a passerby said to the officer.

The officer replies, "You know the construction here? It was going eastbound in the westbound lanes, which is real bad. So I light it up and it takes off in the intersection."

While most Waymo cars can be seen throughout the city driving safely and behaving civilly, erratic driving is not completely out of the question for artificial intelligence.

[Jimaz]

The fun begins at 7:50.

... Aunt Chippy Driverless Car Prank