Volvo to trial self-driving cars on public roads

Volvo has recently announced the news that it will soon begin a trial of 100 self-driving cars on public roads. The test will take place around the Swedish city of Gothenburg. While many other carmakers—and Google—have been experimenting with this kind of autonomous driving technology, the ‘Drive Me—Self-driving cars for sustainable mobility’ project is set to see driverless cars mix with real traffic on real roads. The Drive Me project is a joint initiative between Volvo Car Group, the Swedish Transport Administration, the Swedish Transport Agency, Lindholmen Science Park and the City of Gothenburg. It’s being supported by the Swedish government, with the aim of exploring the ‘societal benefits of autonomous driving’ while also positioning Sweden and Volvo Cars at the forefront of such ‘future mobility’ developments. The pilot scheme will see self-driving cars take to around 50km (31 miles) of roads in and around Gothenburg, including ‘typical commuter arteries’, motorways, and areas with frequent queues. Technical specialist, Volvo Car Group, Erik Coelingh: “Our aim is for the car to be able to handle all possible traffic scenarios by itself, including leaving the traffic flow and finding a safe ‘harbour’ if the driver for any reason is unable to regain control.”