Ford autonomous car development partnerships
Ford has been one of the companies at the forefront of the development of autonomous vehicles. Now instead of having to compete with the other companies jockeying for the lead in self-driving technology, Ford will be be working with them. Ford, Volvo, Google, Uber and Lyft will be forming a coalition. This Ford autonomous car development partnership is meant to aid in the creation of infrastructure that better supports the technology.
Ford Autonomous Partnership Purpose and Goals
This super-group of developers will be calling their alliance the “Self-Driving Coalition for Safer Streets.” The goal of the partnership is to work with lawmakers to develop rules and regulations that are more accommodating to the development of autonomous driving technologies.
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The group will be working with David Strickland, who will be serving as counsel and spokesperson. Strickland is a former administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and was the first to issue autonomous-related policies.
It looks like the group will have the cooperation of the federal government. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx announced in January that the department would help refine regulations that currently restrain the development of autonomous vehicles. The United States government is also offering almost $4 billion in potential funding for autonomous developers.
The decision by these significant companies to work together and the support from the United States government will almost certainly lead to great strides in the development of autonomous technologies. Ford Motor Company has created several ground-breaking technologies on its own, and with the support of these other groups, the technology will grow exponentially.
For all the latest information on any new Ford autonomous developments, stay posted to the Akins Ford blog. If you would like to take a Ford vehicle for a test drive before they can do it all on their own, Akins Ford can help you out with that as well. Take a look at our selection online for more information.