Google’s New Self-Driving Car To Hit California Roads This Summer

on May 17, 2015 at 3:13 pm

Google’s latest version of the self-driving car will make its debut on public roads this summer in California. The pod-like two-seater has no gas pedal and a removable steering wheel. The company’s mission is to have driverless cars available to consumers in the next five years.

These might not be the safest cars, or practical even, but they are adorable looking. I am loving the pod-like look.

In a blog post, Google’s self-driving car project director Chris Urmson explained that a handful of the cars will rolled out in Google’s neighborhood. The cars—which will be fitted with a removable steering wheel, accelerator pedal, and brake pedal—will be supervised by safety drivers and capped to a maximum speed of 25mph. Yes, not the fastest moving vehicle.

Google states that self-driving cars will be a revolution for personal transportation. “Vehicles that can take anyone from A to B at the push of a button could transform mobility for millions of people, whether by reducing the 94 percent of accidents caused by human error, reclaiming the billions of hours wasted in traffic, or bringing everyday destinations and new opportunities within reach of those who might otherwise be excluded by their inability to drive a car,” the company said in a blog post Friday.

And now Google is heading into the next phase of testing by sending its uniquely-designed prototype vehicles onto the roads. The existing fleet uses modified Lexus SUVs, and the prototype uses the same software.

We won’t be seeing these prototypes on the roads anytime soon, and it’ll be awhile before we are able to buy one. But Google’s certainly trying to get there as quickly as it can.