Daimler and Bosch pick San Jose for autonomous taxi trial
The pilot scheme will launch in the city later in 2019.
Mercedes' parent company Daimler and automotive supplier Bosch announced back in 2017 their plans to get autonomous vehicles on the road "by the beginning of the next decade." Now, the partnership is getting ready to roll out testing, and has earmarked San Jose for a pilot trial in the second half of 2019.
Using automated Mercedes Benz S Class vehicles, the trial will see on-demand ride-hailing on offer in the San Carlos/Stevens Creek corridor between downtown and west San Jose. The city -- the third largest in California -- is on track to see a 40 percent population spurt over the next two years, so officials are keen to see how automated vehicle tech will help address growing transportation challenges. "We have to rethink urban transportation," says Dr Stephan Honle, senior vice president of automated driving at Bosch. "Automated driving will help us complete the picture of future urban traffic."
