A Cruise robotaxi in San Francisco in 2023. Photo: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images
It looks like we won't be seeing Cruise driverless taxis on Charlotte streets again after all.
What's happening: General Motors is shutting down its Cruise robotaxi project, citing intense competition for self-driving cars and the steep costs associated with developing them, Axios' Nathan Bomeyreported.
Zoom in: Cruise had tested its vehicles in Charlotte last year to determine how quickly the vehicles could be approved for business in North Carolina, WBTV reported.
Locally, the cars had drivers in them while they learned our driving behavior and got to know the city roadways, a Cruise spokesperson told Axios in 2023.
The hope was that commuters would be able to order one, just like an Uber or Lyft.
Context: GM's decision, Bomey wrote, comes after a tumultuous period for Cruise, which was engulfed in controversy when a robotaxi it was testing in San Francisco struck and dragged a pedestrian in October 2023.
