Passengers in California Can Now Pay to Use Robotaxis
The past decade has seen great advancements in automobile technology. Tesla showed that electric vehicles were a viable transportation option, and in the decade since the firm launched its first electric vehicle (“EV”), the industry has come a long way. Now, we aren’t just talking about electric vehicles, we are also seeing firms develop autonomous, self-driving vehicles. And thanks to two new programs approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (“CPUC”), people in California will soon be able to ride in a self-driving “robotaxi.”
For quite a while, the Sunshine state has been familiar with self-driving vehicles, with the CPUC approving more than a dozen companies’ requests to test out their self-driving vehicles on the streets of California. However, these firms were not allowed to launch commercial ride-hailing services using their autonomous vehicles, partly due to California’s strict rules for autonomous vehicle operators. In fact, the state has the most strict regulations in the entire country, requiring AV operators to obtain different licenses for different types of testing, list the number of miles driven, divulge any vehicle crashes as well as the number of times human safety drivers had to take control of the autonomous vehicles.
The California Public Utilities Commission, which regulates autonomous vehicles (“AVs”) and taxis in fleet service functions such as ride-hailing, has been hard at work on the rules that will regulate a commercial ride-hailing service for AVs for a number of years. The result of these efforts was two programs: DAV, or the Drivered Autonomous Vehicle Program, and the Driverless Autonomous Vehicle Deployment Program. According to CPUC, these two programs will allow AV operators that opt in to avail passenger services, shared rides, as well as to accept payment for the use of the vehicles.
CPUC Commissioner Genevieve Shiroma says that the two programs will be case studies in how autonomous vehicles can enhance the state’s efforts to electrify the streets. In addition, California Governor Gavin Newsom recently announced that the state will ban the sale of new fossil-fuel-powered automobiles by 2035, a move that puts the state in line with countries such as the UK, Norway, Sweden and Iceland.
AV operators that would like to opt into the two programs are required to obtain a charter-party carrier Class P permit or Class A charter-party certificate in the Drivered AV Passenger Service’s pilot program from the CPUC together with an AV testing permit from California’s DoV. Participating firms will also be expected to hand in quarterly reports to the regulator containing aggregated data about the pick-up as well as drop-off points, how many wheelchair-accessible AVs, the fuel types and electric-charging vehicles used, how many miles vehicles and passengers have traveled, and service to disadvantaged communities.
Elsewhere in the country, there is a flurry of activity in the EV sector. For example, Net Element (NASDAQ: NETE) revealed its intention to merge with an electric carmaker called Mullen Technologies, Inc. It should be remembered that Net Element is a financial tech company, so it will be interesting to see how the new entity created pans out.
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the Green Car Stocks website applicable to all content provided by GCS, wherever published or re-published: https://www.GreenCarStocks.com/Disclaimer
The past decade has seen great advancements in automobile technology. Tesla showed that electric vehicles were a viable transportation option, and in the decade since the firm launched its first electric vehicle (“EV”), the industry has come a long way. Now, we aren’t just talking about electric vehicles, we are also seeing firms develop autonomous, self-driving vehicles. And thanks to two new programs approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (“CPUC”), people in California will soon be able to ride in a self-driving “robotaxi.”
For quite a while, the Sunshine state has been familiar with self-driving vehicles, with the CPUC approving more than a dozen companies’ requests to test out their self-driving vehicles on the streets of California. However, these firms were not allowed to launch commercial ride-hailing services using their autonomous vehicles, partly due to California’s strict rules for autonomous vehicle operators. In fact, the state has the most strict regulations in the entire country, requiring AV operators to obtain different licenses for different types of testing, list the number of miles driven, divulge any vehicle crashes as well as the number of times human safety drivers had to take control of the autonomous vehicles.
The California Public Utilities Commission, which regulates autonomous vehicles (“AVs”) and taxis in fleet service functions such as ride-hailing, has been hard at work on the rules that will regulate a commercial ride-hailing service for AVs for a number of years. The result of these efforts was two programs: DAV, or the Drivered Autonomous Vehicle Program, and the Driverless Autonomous Vehicle Deployment Program. According to CPUC, these two programs will allow AV operators that opt in to avail passenger services, shared rides, as well as to accept payment for the use of the vehicles.
CPUC Commissioner Genevieve Shiroma says that the two programs will be case studies in how autonomous vehicles can enhance the state’s efforts to electrify the streets. In addition, California Governor Gavin Newsom recently announced that the state will ban the sale of new fossil-fuel-powered automobiles by 2035, a move that puts the state in line with countries such as the UK, Norway, Sweden and Iceland.
AV operators that would like to opt into the two programs are required to obtain a charter-party carrier Class P permit or Class A charter-party certificate in the Drivered AV Passenger Service’s pilot program from the CPUC together with an AV testing permit from California’s DoV. Participating firms will also be expected to hand in quarterly reports to the regulator containing aggregated data about the pick-up as well as drop-off points, how many wheelchair-accessible AVs, the fuel types and electric-charging vehicles used, how many miles vehicles and passengers have traveled, and service to disadvantaged communities.
Elsewhere in the country, there is a flurry of activity in the EV sector. For example, Net Element (NASDAQ: NETE) revealed its intention to merge with an electric carmaker called Mullen Technologies, Inc. It should be remembered that Net Element is a financial tech company, so it will be interesting to see how the new entity created pans out.
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the Green Car Stocks website applicable to all content provided by GCS, wherever published or re-published: https://www.GreenCarStocks.com/Disclaimer
