Chinese are winning the race to put autonomous vehicles on the road. Similar efforts are underway in the US as well but Chinese are determined to launch it by the end of the year. Chinese players such as Baidu, Alibaba-backed AutoX and ride-sharing king DiDi Chuxing have recently launched autonomous taxi pilot projects in cities around the country.
In US self-driving companies had suspended testing because of Corona Virus however Chinese companies accelerated their plans. Multiple companies in China are testing their “robotaxis” in different parts of the city. “While players such as Waymo are halting their robotaxi pilots during the pandemic, over 30 companies are deploying autonomous delivery solutions in China,” said Bill Russo, founder of Shanghai-based consultancy Automobility.
AutoX will be the first service in China allowed to drive up to 80km/hr and also being able to pick up and drop off passengers anywhere in the trial area of Jiading district. For now, this service is free for consumers and equipped with safety drivers however they expect to charge for the rides in the next two to three years.
For now, the vehicles are assisted by a safety driver to monitor the changes. Different tests are also carried out with the robotaxis to see if it can react similarly like a human in emergency situations. Soon, the Chinese market will have multiple companies running robotaxis and in no time they will launch these services across the world.
Robotaxis will be beneficial because the number of accidents will reduce saving many lives which are lost due to human errors such as speed driving, drink driving and distractions. This also means that people who are old or impaired to drive will be able to use this service with ease. On the other hand, many people will lose their jobs and such services will be expensive for everyone to afford. The risk of hacking the system will also be an issue just similar to a computer since these cars are automated.
While there are still non-automated vehicles on the road interacting with autonomous vehicles there are bound to still be accidents. There are many improvements autonomous cars will have on the environment, economy and lives saved come from a fully integrated system, it may take some time before we see the expected benefits of the technology.
