General Motors' driverless all-electric Chevrolet Bolt doesn't have a steering wheel or pedals and has officially asked the federal Department of Transportation to exempt it from certain parts of the rules that govern automotive safety.
"In an age where cars won’t need any kind of pedals or steering wheels, those don’t quite make sense. They’re almost illogical or missing a predicate when there is an artificial intelligence, a computer driver,” says Paul Hemmersbaugh, GM’s policy director for autonomous vehicles.
To handle riders who demand a human touch, and to do things like call emergency services in case of a crash, GM will rely on its in-vehicle OnStar system.
Read the article at Wired.
According to a study of fuel costs released Thursday by the University of Michigan, the average cost to operate an EV is $485 per year, while the average for a gasoline-powered vehicle is $1,117
This study only examined fuel costs, but the maintenance cost for electric vehicles has also been found to be lower because they have fewer moving parts, no exhaust system, less need for cooling, less abrasive braking options, and no need to change "oil, fan belts, air filters, timing belts, head gaskets, cylinder heads and spark plugs."
"Electric cars are vastly better than internal combustion devices," said James Anderson, a Harvard scientist who spoke in Chicago Thursday. He was not referring to the Michigan study, but made his own comparison. "I mean they are incredibly fun to drive, they’re quick, fast, quiet. They don’t have carbon dioxide spewing out of the back.”
Read the article at Forbes.
Fleet Sustainability is not just about energy. It’s not just about emissions. It’s not just about efficiency. It’s about all of these things, and it makes good sense in any political climate.
Smart winter driving safety tips from Driving Dynamics -- a one-second advantage can make a world of difference.
On Wednesday, a box van running a red light in Pittsburgh struck an Argo self-driving, modified Ford Fusion, sending two of the four occupants to the hospital. .
It is not yet known whether the Argo car was in self-driving mode at the time of the accident, or if charges will be filed against the driver of the box van
"Ford invested $1bn into Pittsburgh-based startup Argo AI in February 2016 with plans for creating the self-driving technology to drive the automotive company’s autonomous vehicles."
Read the article at The Guardian.