Aug 14, 2020 - Economy

Michigan plans 40-mile corridor for autonomous vehicles

Joann Muller

illustration of a michigan highway made for autonomous vehicles — Source: Cavnue

Michigan plans to develop a 40-mile stretch of highway dedicated to connected and autonomous vehicles between Detroit and Ann Arbor.

Why it matters: The corridor would be the first in the nation, improving transit access for people who live and work along the route.

Automated and connected buses, shuttles and freight trucks would run in dedicated lanes along the Interstate 94 corridor, linking the University of Michigan to Detroit Metropolitan Airport and the city's downtown.

Details: The project will be led by Cavnue, a newly formed subsidiary of Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners, a high-tech infrastructure company funded by Alphabet and the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan.

Several automakers and autonomous driving startups will serve on an advisory committee, including Ford, GM, Argo AI, Arrival, BMW, Honda, Toyota, TuSimple and Waymo.
The project will take a while to get up and running; organizers say they'll spend the first two years testing technologies and exploring roadway designs and financing models.

What they're saying: "We are taking the initial steps to build the infrastructure to help us test and deploy the cars of the future," Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer said in a statement.

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Michigan plans 40-mile corridor for autonomous vehicles

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