ABCtech #112 16MAR18 Alberta Autonomous Transportation

ABCtech #112 16MAR18 Alberta Autonomous Transportation

Magnovates challenges LRT investment

Just hit pause on the west leg of the Valley Line LRT — that’s the message magnetic-levitation transit entrepreneur Dan Corns has for Edmonton’s City council.

The world is on the cusp of a revolution — driverless on-demand shuttles that will make LRT look slow, overbuilt and onerous, said Corns. Build a $2.24-billion rail line to the west end and it might look obsolete before it opens. FOR MORE

Transportation is an essential component of any economy’s infrastructure. The following article highlights changes Alberta must anticipate: the enmasse retiring of truck drivers, backed up and archaic transportation “systems”, and the imminent arrival of automated vehicles (AV).

We view change as OPPORTUNITY, an opportunity for Alberta to lead in the automation of transportation. Consider, by “Automating the QE” Alberta would be creating a North American first, establishing an economic corridor – the first leg of an automated link to Denver, and stirring innovation. Agree?  Reply HERE

Thank you Alberta AV Network contributors:

Stan Pankratz       Richard Pootmans       Paul Godsmark       Herman Oosthuysen

Dimitra Katsuris    Alex Ramirez-Serrano    Chris Blaschuk    Brian Dumsday

Peter Kelly    Victor Panlilio    Perry Kinkaide

Have a BIG Idea, let us know HERE

Yesterday a pedestrian was killed in the US by an autonomous vehicle … compared with almost 5,000 pedestrians killed in 2014 by a driven vehicle (p. 180 – Steven Pinker, Enlightenment Now).  Autonomous vehicles must be held to a higher standard than human drivers.  Let’s learn to do better – all of us. – Editor

What Uber’s tragic accident could mean for the future of autonomous cars – from MIT Technology Review

A pedestrian death HERE raises concerns about how the vehicles should be deployed.

The news: A self-driving Uber killed a pedestrian in Tempe, Arizona, on Sunday. The car, which had a safety driver behind the wheel at the time, did not slow down.

What now: Uber halted self-driving testing in the US. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.
Crunch time: Experts worry that public outcry at serious accidents involving driverless vehicles could lead to onerous regulations. Now we’re about to find out.

What the experts say: We’ve spoken to researchers to dig into the legal, ethical, political, and technological implications of the crash. Read what they have to say.

Vision, Mission and Action – formulated by Autonomous Alberta … providing  leadership to assist Alberta in creating an environment that will enable the Province to become the first jurisdiction in North America to become autonomous technology (AT) friendly and that autonomous vehicles (AV) become pervasive as the primary means of mobility for persons, goods and services by 2028. Contact HERE

Automomous Vehicles in Alberta  …  Alberta should grab the opportunity and work towards an efficient modernization of its transport infrastructure and industry, to ensure the future prosperity of the province.

California OKs autonomous car testing without backup drivers … Driverless cars will be tested in California for the first time without a person behind a steering wheel under new rules that state regulators approved Monday (February 26th) for the fast-developing technology. … Until now, driverless cars could only be tested on public roads in the state if a person could take the wheel in an emergency.

Driving tests for self-driving cars – Autonomous cars should be safer than human-driven ones, but proving it will be tricky … By focusing on the acceptable rather than obsessing over perfection, and by breaking down the colossal number of safety verifications into manageable tasks, we can make self-driving vehicles a reality for many customers around the world.

The Merits of Autonomous Vehicle Testing in Calgary … Whereas autonomous vehicles are being tested in cities throughout North America … BE IT RESOLVED that …

Edmonton moves ahead on driverless vehicle testing … The technology for driverless vehicles is coming sooner than people realize, Paul Godsmark, with the Canadian Automated Vehicles Centre of Excellence, a non-profit group, told the urban planning committee.

Edmonton speeds up work on autonomous vehicles … Survey shows lots of Albertans are wary of the new technology.