Google Self-Driving Car is now Smaller and Less Reliant on Human Assistance22-May-2015

Google’s latest self-driving cars are smaller, while they will be assisted (if needed) by a single person with a detachable steering wheel, gas pedal and brake pedal if the car needs to be taken over in an emergency situation. Older versions from Google required a two person team of emergency operators, and it’s another sign of progress for self driving vehicles.

The ultimate goal from Google is to create “a vehicle that could shoulder the entire burden of driving,” and the new purpose built self-driving cars will take to public roads for the first time this summer.  There are now four states that allow self-driving cars on the road; Michigan, Florida, California and Nevada, but Google still has plenty of improvements to make in the meantime.

The tech company recently announced that “to provide the best experience we can, we’ll need to master snow-covered roadways, interpret temporary construction signals and handle other tricky situations that many drivers encounter.”

Currently, self driving cars require a special license to operate and they’re only available to the testers of the vehicles, rather than the public, but the director of the project, Chris Urmson, has high hopes for the future.

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