General Motors has announced plans to build a fleet of self-driving Chevrolet Volt sedans.
The autonomous hybrids will be deployed as part of a car-sharing service to help employees get around the company’s Warren Technical Center campus. The 326-acre facility will employ approximately 21,600 employees after its $1 billion expansion plan is complete.
GM workers will be able to reserve a Volt using a car-sharing app, then simply select a destination. The Volt will then drive itself to the chosen destination and automatically park.
“The program will serve as a rapid-development laboratory to provide data and lessons to accelerate the company’s technical capabilities in autonomous vehicles,” the company said in a statement.
Aside from the Volt pilot program, GM has also announced that its “Super Cruise” technology will be available on the 2017 Cadillac CT6. The semi-autonomous feature will take over steering and braking while cruising on the highway or dealing with stop-and-go traffic.
“The convergence of rapidly improving technology and changing consumer preferences is creating an inflection point for the transportation industry not seen in decades,” said GM chief Mary Barra. “Some might find this massive change to be daunting, but we look at it and see the opportunity to be a disruptor. We believe our decades of leadership in vehicle connectivity is fundamental to our quest to redefine the future of personal mobility.”
Leave a Reply