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California Starts Issuing Self-Driving Car Permits
SourceSelf-driving cars can now officially hit the road in California, though they will still require some help from their human passengers for awhile.
The California Department of Motor Vehicles today started issuing permits that allow for testing of autonomous vehicles on public California roads. Those who pay a $150 application fee get permits for 10 vehicles and 20 drivers. Adding another 10 drivers costs $50 more.
Audi has already signed on; the AP reported that Google will have the highest number of self-driving cars on the road at 25.
But before you prepare yourself for driverless cars zipping around Los Angeles and up and down the Pacific Coast Highway, know that this testing period requires that all autonomous vehicles have a driver who is capable of stopping the car if something goes awry.
SourceComputer-driven cars have been testing their skills on California roads for more than four years -- but until now, the Department of Motor Vehicles wasn't sure just how many were rolling around.
That changed Tuesday, when the agency required self-driving cars to be registered and issued testing permits that let three companies dispatch 29 vehicles onto freeways and into neighborhoods -- with a human behind the wheel in case the onboard equipment makes a bad decision.
These may be the cars of the future, but for now they represent a tiny fraction of California's approximately 32 million registered vehicles.
A Guy