Self-driving taxis hit the road in Dubai

The autonomous cars will be on the roads for the next three months in selected parts of the city


Tech Desk October 15, 2018
The Dubai Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) on Sunday presented the region's first self-driving taxi at the ongoing five-day Gitex Technology Week, the biggest IT fair in the Middle East. PHOTO: RTA

Self-driving taxis hit the road in Dubai at the annual consumer electronics trade show held in the city on Sunday.

Dubai's Road and Transport Authority kicked off the service that includes trial runs for the next three months in selected parts of the city.

Airbus offers a peek at its flying taxi

“The vehicles feature a high safety and security standard. It can remotely scan and figure out the surroundings, such as light signals and the four sides of the track through a GPS system. It can monitor any object that may have the potential of triggering a collision,” explained Ahmed Bahrozyan, CEO of RTA’s Public Transport Agency.

Apart from that, the cars can speed up to 35 km per hour and fit up to four riders including a standby driver. The driver can take over in the case of a technical glitch by pressing a button that shifts the car from an autonomous driving mode to the traditional human driving mode.

The cars include Mercedes-Benz sedans with cameras, sensors, and LiDAR system built into the car.

Dubai starts tests in bid to become first city with flying taxis

Last month, Dubai had staged a test flight for what it said would soon be the world’s first drone taxi service under an ambitious plan.

Meant to fly without remote control guidance and with a maximum flight duration of 30 minutes, the flying taxi developed by German drone firm Volocopter resembles a small, two-seater helicopter cabin.

This article originally appeared on Mashable.

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