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Eugene

(62,648 posts)
Mon Nov 26, 2018, 09:29 AM Nov 2018

A lot of cities want roboshuttles, including D.C. But will they work?

Source: Washington Post

A lot of cities want roboshuttles, including D.C. But will they work?

By Michael Laris November 25 at 5:11 PM

From the Mall to Lincoln, Neb., planners across the United States are pushing slow-rolling roboshuttles as a way to dip their toes into greater automation.

The stubby, bread-box-looking vehicles go about 10 mph, and boosters say they’re a relatively easy and potentially transformative tool for moving people, even as autonomous cars, trucks and minivans continue their development and rollout. Others counsel caution, raising concerns about safety, oversight and economic viability, and fears about adding congestion to roadways and eliminating jobs.

A business group in the District wants one of the self-driving shuttles to connect the Smithsonian, with its millions of visitors, to the city’s resurgent waterfront less than a half mile away.

At Maryland’s National Harbor, shuttle maker Local Motors has applied for permits to start carrying potential buyers past a replica of Air Force One as early as next month, with rides expected to open to the public later next year.

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Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/trafficandcommuting/a-lot-of-cities-want-roboshuttles-including-dc-but-will-they-work/2018/11/25/8f178ebe-ed02-11e8-8679-934a2b33be52_story.html


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