No one knows for sure when self-driving cars will really hit the market, helping us go effortlessly wherever we need to go. This uncertainty is caused by too many unknown variables, such as the advancement of technology, regulations, and consumer acceptance.
However, none of these factors could keep Volvo from offering the public a date for the launch of its self-driving vehicle: 2020. The carmaker wants to eliminate all serious injuries and deaths caused in traffic by the end of the decade.
There’s only so much automatic braking, airbags, and other tech can do to keep us alive on the road, so Volvo plans to involve use automated driving in the equation.
As soon as next year, the company wants to verify the tech in the real world by putting 100 passengers in robocars for a pilot test in Gothenburg, Sweden. Today, April 7, 2016, Volvo announced it plans to do the same thing in China.
The Chinese road transportation system is one of the most challenging in the world, but Volvo hopes to make self-driving cars part of the solution that will make it better.
According to Erick Coelingh, Volvo’s chief of the self-driving division, the details have yet to be settled. The company is still unclear about the when or the where the China trial will begin, but it’s safe to say one of the country’s many megacities will start sporting the robocars in just a few years.
For the trial, Volvo is looking for commuters who come to the city via the highway. These people will represent Volvo’s diverse customer base, and all they have to do is stay awake and sober in the driver’s seat.
Why is the highway bit important? Because Volvo’s vehicles are not entirely autonomous yet. In Gothenburg, Sweden, the company will use XC90 hybrid SUVs, modified with the ability to handle a simple driving environment: no intersections, traffic signals, pedestrians, and cyclists.
The car will learn some new traffic behaviors, such as the ability to slide between lanes or make room for emergency vehicles. It will also be programmed to alert the human when their highway exit is coming up so they can take over.
But why was China Volvo’s next choice for the testing program? According to Coelingh, this nation is the brand’s biggest market right now, in dire need of something to fix its transportation system.
As it is, China deals with brutal air pollution, terrible congestion, and over 200,000 traffic-related deaths annually.
Image Source: QZ
