Cory Gunther
The self-driving company Cruise has worked tirelessly to bring its autonomous taxi service to the public, and now it’s finally happening. This week, Cruise received a permit from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and can charge actual customers for driverless ridesharing.
While the GM-backed Cruise received limited approval to continue testing the service back in February, along with Waymo, this most recent approval changed everything. Cruise says it’s now the “first and only company to operate a commercial, driverless, ride-hail service in a major U.S. city.”
The company initially wanted to release its service by 2019, which obviously didn’t happen, but now if you live in San Francisco, you can give it a try. There are still limits, mind you, but it’s a start.
According to Cruise, it’ll be operating 30 all-electric vehicles between 10 PM and 6 AM on allowed roads throughout San Francisco. However, bad weather like heavy rain, fog, smoke, or snow will cause the service to stop until conditions improve.
As long as you’re in an eligible location during operating hours, you’ll be able to hail the self-driving taxi, pay for a ride, and take a trip. It looks like the company will be gradually rolling out the rides to specific areas over the next few weeks, ensuring the process goes smoothly.
This is essential for autonomous ridesharing services, but it’s important to remember that it’s only available in one city during select hours with optimal weather conditions. Then again, those limits may get removed down the road as the technology improves. Give it a try by signing up on the Cruise website.
via The Verge
