NEW YORK, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- U.S. auto giant General Motors' subsidiary company Cruise Automation is applying to begin the first sustained testing of vehicles in fully autonomous mode in New York State in early 2018.
New York State Governor Andrew M. Cuomo made the announcement in a press release on Tuesday.
"Autonomous vehicles have the potential to save time and save lives, and we are proud to be working with GM and Cruise on the future of this exciting new technology," Guomo said.
Following the state's recent legislation allowing the testing of autonomous technology through a pilot program, GM's Cruise Automation is applying to begin testing in Manhattan in New York City, according to the release.
The testing will include an engineer in the driver's seat to monitor and evaluate performance, and a second person in the passenger seat.
The Department of Motor Vehicles and State Police will work with Cruise and GM to ensure all testing meets relevant safety, vehicle and insurance requirements.
Kyle Vogt, CEO of Cruise Automation, said that testing in New York will accelerate the timeline to deploying self-driving cars at scale. "New York City is one of the most densely populated places in the world and provides new opportunities to expose our software to unusual situations, which means we can improve our software at a much faster rate."
