The first driverless car emerged on the streets of London, England, er, the sidewalks, actually, on Feb. 11.
The electric-powered LUTZ Pathfinder is able to travel up to 12 miles per hour and uses cameras, radar and sensors to avoid obstacles. It was designed by Transport Systems Catapult and is currently traipsing along the sidewalks of London’s Greenwich neighborhood. The “pod” seats two, and a fleet of them will be tested later this year in another England town. Each of them will have a steering wheel and a driver in case something should go wrong and the driver needs to take control.
You won’t be seeing any of these on major roadways or highways anytime soon – Transport Systems Catapult designed them to help people with short journeys over pavement and other pedestrian areas.
The driverless car industry globally is expected to be worth about $1.4 trillion by 2025, according to the UK government.
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