Ontario and Michigan are completing a cross-border autonomous vehicle test drive today, July 31st, and to cap it off, the province and state will sign a mutual agreement to continue collaborative efforts on the development of automated vehicles.
The two regions, which together account for 26 percent of North American vehicle production, began the joint drive in Detroit and will continue from Windsor to Sarnia before crossing back over the border to end the day in Traverse City.
Magna International supplied Ontario’s vehicle, a 2015 Cadillac ATS (shown above), and Continental Automotive North America provided Michigan’s Chrysler 300.
The two cars use features like traffic jam assist, lane keeping, and driver fatigue, attention and engagement-monitoring technology in order to automate the process of driving.
Ontario reports it is investing $80 million CAD over five years for the ‘Autonomous Vehicle Innovation Network’ to help maximize the economic potential of automated and connected vehicle technologies.
It currently has six participants in its automated vehicle pilot program: The University of Waterloo, The Erwin Hymer Group, QNX, Continental, X-Matik Inc. and Magna, which recently gained Nest co-founder and former Apple executive Tony Fadell on its advisory council.
Image credit: Wikimedia – Norbert Aepli
Source: Ontario
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