Tag Archives: driverless cars

How about a pilotless air taxi?

Those are coming, too. Not as quickly and with fewer details now available, but it’s out there. Advanced Air Mobility company Wisk agreed to a deal with Sugar Land last week to bring pilotless air taxis to the Houston area. … Continue reading

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The state of robotaxis in 2024

Good read. In 2023, it almost felt as if the promise of robotaxis was soon to be fulfilled. Hailing a robotaxi had briefly become the new trendy thing to do in San Francisco, as simple and everyday as ordering a … Continue reading

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Driverless trucks minus human “safety drivers” set to debut later this year

I-45 will be where to find them. Driverless trucks with no humans on board will soon cruise Texas highways if three startup firms have their way despite objections from critics who say financial pressures, not safety, is behind the timetable. … Continue reading

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Autonomous Metro shuttle 2.0

Cool. Metro is restarting its delayed study of autonomous transit, with the full-throated support of outgoing Houston mayor Sylvester Turner as a vital step toward a region not further choking on cars and trucks. “Those objectives do not end at … Continue reading

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Cruise and Houston

An interesting overview of the currently-on-pause driverless taxi service in our town. The nationwide pause included Houston and Austin. However, no Texas or local entity required Cruise to take its vehicles off the road because they legally could not. Senate … Continue reading

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Another look at Cruise

While we wait to see what happens. Cruise employees worry that there is no easy way to fix the company’s problems, said five former and current employees and business partners, while its rivals fear Cruise’s issues could lead to tougher … Continue reading

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A brief primer on driverless cars

From the Trib: It’s 8 p.m. in downtown Austin, and the electric cars silently exit the parking lot one by one — but no one is behind the wheel of any of them. The Cruise depot is full of people … Continue reading

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California DMV pulls Cruise permits

Some bumps in the road there. Citing public safety concerns about Cruise‘s robotaxi line operating in San Francisco, California DMV officials announced Tuesday that the agency had suspended permits for the driverless cars deployed by General Motors’ autonomous vehicle subsidiary. … Continue reading

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NHTSA investigating Cruise

Of interest. U.S. regulators are investigating General Motors’ Cruise autonomous vehicle division after receiving reports of incidents where vehicles may not have used proper caution around pedestrians in roadways. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said that the reports involve … Continue reading

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Cruise officially rolls out in Houston

The service is limited for now, but I suspect it will expand soon enough. A driverless ride hailing service is launching operations Thursday in Houston, where residents in select locations can start catching autonomous rides at 9 p.m. Cruise driverless … Continue reading

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Cruise cars are out on our streets

From Axios. Cruise is testing autonomous vehicles without safety drivers in Houston ahead of a planned expansion into commercial nighttime service by the end of the year. Driving the news: A spokesperson for the autonomous vehicle company confirmed to Axios … Continue reading

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Time for another Cruise update

Driverless taxi service Cruise got the full go-ahead in San Francisco. In a win for the autonomous vehicle industry, California regulators have given the green light to Cruise and Waymo to offer commercial robotaxi services across San Francisco 24 hours … Continue reading

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How to confuse a driverless car

Hilarious. Self-driving cars have met their match in the form of the humble traffic cone. If you’re on TikTok, you may have seen what I’m talking about: a viral video of San Francisco activists disabling autonomous Cruise and Waymo vehicles … Continue reading

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Cruise cars spotted in the wild

There I was at the WalMart on Yale this week, with my parents, and what did I see but this: Yes, it’s a Cruise car, charging up in the parking lot. We knew that at least initially they will have … Continue reading

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Cruise comes to Houston

I’m genuinely curious to see how this goes. Cruise, a General Motors autonomous vehicle subsidiary, is bringing its self-driving cars to Houston with the goal of offering driverless rides. The cars will begin testing next week, said Megan Prichard, Cruise’s … Continue reading

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Metro’s first electric bus has arrived

Good. Metro’s next fleet of buses quietly is coming together, in more ways than one. The first of 20 electric 40-foot buses bought by Metropolitan Transit Authority has arrived in Houston, though it will be some time before it is … Continue reading

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Tesla autopilot crash mystery solved

It wasn’t on autopilot after all. Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board apparently have solved the mystery of why no one was found behind the steering wheel of a Tesla that crashed near The Woodlands two years ago, killing … Continue reading

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Driverless taxi service arrives in Austin

Brace yourselves, Austinites. A rite of passage as an Austinite is feeling bewildered at other drivers’ choices behind the wheel, but that’s starting to change. Cruise, a driverless ridehailing app, has completed its first driverless rides in Austin, marking its official … Continue reading

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Driverless taxi update

Things to watch out for in the nearer-than-you-think future, with Austin first in line. When transit systems experience delays, the reason usually isn’t very interesting: congested streets, medical emergencies, mechanical problems. But the cause of a recent holdup on San … Continue reading

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IKEA gets self-driving trucks

Not for home delivery. Not yet, anyway.

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Nuro keeps on expanding in Houston

Someone must be using these services. I’m not, but someone must be. Houstonians will soon be able to get completely autonomous delivery of their dinners, groceries, and more thanks to a new 10-year partnership. Uber Technologies, Inc. and Nuro have … Continue reading

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Another story about driverless trucks on I-45

The driverless trucks start coming and they don’t stop coming. Waymo will partner in coming weeks with manufacturer Daimler Truck to put self-driving 18-wheelers on the road, further expanding the technology company’s autonomous testing between Dallas and Houston. The big … Continue reading

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Metro gets electric bus money

Good. Metro’s plan to gradually get rid of gasoline-powered buses took a step forward this week, when federal officials awarded the transit agency nearly $21.6 million to replace 20 diesel buses with electric ones, and the equipment needed to keep … Continue reading

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Stalking Coco, the food delivery robot

A delightful tale by Chron food editor Emma Balter, who was determined to prove to herself that Coco the food delivery robot actually worked as advertised, even on Houston’s notoriously un-pedestrian (and presumably food-delivery-robot) streets. It took a couple of … Continue reading

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In Houston, the trucks drive you

Yet another driverless truck story. Autonomous freight trucking company Embark will make Houston the hub for its new Texas operations and launch an autonomous trucking route along Interstate 10 to San Antonio. The San Francisco-based company this month said it … Continue reading

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Who wants to have their dinner delivered by a robot?

Here’s your chance. Heads up, Houston: the robots are coming. Coco, the Los Angeles-based business that offers a remotely piloted delivery service, has hit the streets of Houston with its food-delivery bots as part of its expansion to targeted markets. … Continue reading

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Metro electric bus update

Some new details here. Within the next year or so, you’ll see electric-powered buses buzzing around Bayou City. The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO) recently awarded a $22 million contract to Saint-Eustache, Canada-based Nova Bus for the production … Continue reading

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Here comes Waymo on I-45

They’ve actually been on this road for a couple of months, but now they’re doing more. Waymo will begin hauling freight for North America’s largest logistics firm on autonomous big rigs traveling between Dallas and Houston on Interstate 45. The … Continue reading

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Why do driverless trucks love I-45?

For a combination of reasons. Texas, particularly the stretch of highway between Houston and Dallas, has emerged as one of the nation’s main proving grounds for autonomous trucking, with freight trucks driving themselves from pickup destinations to shipping warehouses hundreds … Continue reading

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Still more driverless trucks

A familiar story by now. Some trucks hauling FedEx deliveries from Dallas to Houston may soon be missing a key feature: drivers. Autonomous vehicle company Aurora announced this month it has partnered with FedEx and truck-manufacturer PACCAR to begin testing … Continue reading

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Driverless Lyft service coming to Austin

We’ll see what the demand is. People in Austin who use the ride-hailing service Lyft will have the option of selecting a self-driving car starting in 2022. But, at least initially, two humans will sit in the front as “test … Continue reading

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Is it a car that flies or a plane that drives?

It’s a little of both. A prototype flying car has completed a 35-minute flight between international airports in Nitra and Bratislava, Slovakia. The hybrid car-aircraft, AirCar, is equipped with a BMW engine and runs on regular petrol-pump fuel. Its creator, … Continue reading

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Tesla crash update

Interesting. Federal investigators on Monday released their preliminary assessment of a deadly crash in Spring involving a Tesla, though many details of the incident remain under scrutiny, including whether anyone was in the driver’s seat at the time of the … Continue reading

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Tesla disputes official account of that autopilot crash

Can’t say I’m surprised. Tesla officials are disputing numerous assertions of local police related to a recent deadly crash in the Spring area, reiterating statements by founder Elon Musk that autopilot was not engaged on the vehicle. Further, company officials … Continue reading

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