In his eighth and final State of the Union address, President Obama pledged to “invest in the future” with regards to transportation. His statements mainly centered around moving away from fossil fuels, but a new announcement by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) puts his comments in a different light.
According to the statement, the Obama Administration will look to add $4 billion to the 2017 budget to “accelerate the development and adoption of safe vehicle automation through real-world pilot projects.” It’s too early to tell where exactly the money will go — the full budget will not be revealed until February 9 — but investments in autonomous frameworks such as vehicle-to-infrastructure communication systems are likely a given.
In addition, DOT Secretary Anthony Foxx revealed plans to institute a countrywide regulatory framework for autonomous vehicle development. Currently, states make their own rules pertaining to autonomous cars, and Foxx believes a national policy will remove “potential roadblocks to the integration of innovative, transformational automotive technology.”
“We are on the cusp of a new era in automotive technology with enormous potential to save lives, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and transform mobility for the American people,” Foxx said at the 2016 Detroit Auto Show. “Today’s actions and those we will pursue in the coming months will provide the foundation and the path forward for manufacturers, state officials, and consumers to use new technologies and achieve their full safety potential.”
Foxx says that within six months, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and auto industry leaders will develop a model state policy to test the waters for a national framework.
Like it or not, the autonomous future is really starting to ramp up, and the world of driving will be forever changed because of it. For more news on self-driving vehicles and the government’s strategies, stay tuned to DT Cars.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.