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© GRAPHIC NEWS

© GRAPHIC NEWS

Graphic shows Waymo robot car, and “disengagements” -- occasions when a driver has to take control -- per 1,000km driven.
GN35247EN

TECH

Long road for autonomous cars

By Duncan Mil

March 29, 2017 - Tests of 103 self-driving cars from nine manufacturers, driven over one million km on Californian roads, found Google’s Waymo scored best with just one human intervention every 8,250km driven.

The U.S. state of California has issued licenses to 21 companies allowing them to test self-driving vehicles on public roads. Those companies have to submit a so-called Disengagement Report -- defined as situations where a human must intervene while the car is in driverless mode -- to the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

The number of test vehicles grew by 45 percent from 71 in 2015 to 103 in 2016, with nine manufacturers testing cars. The largest fleets are operated by Google-Waymo and GM Cruise with 60 and 25 vehicles respectively. Those two companies account for 83 percent of all test vehicles in California.

Uber currently operates a fleet of 43 robot cars in three states: Pennsylvania, Arizona and California, but did not submit a disengagement report to the DMV in 2016. However, an internal report leaked to technology website Recode shows that in the week ending March 8, Uber’s robot cars reportedly drove a combined 20,354 miles (25,750km), with drivers taking over roughly 16,000 times. Waymo vehicles would need human intervention around four times over a similar distance.

Link to Recode report

Uber suspended its self-driving car programme for three days after one of its autonomous vehicles was involved in a high-impact crash in Tempe, Arizona on March 24.

Sources
PUBLISHED: 29/03/2017; STORY: Graphic News; PICTURES: Associated Press
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