Nevada approves self-driving cars; boy, they love to gamble, don’t they?

Dan Seitz Contributing Writer, Tech

robocar 214x214 Nevada approves self driving cars; boy, they love to gamble, dont they?Self-driving cars are a nerd’s dream and a lawyer’s nightmare. Imagine if a robot car is speeding or cuts somebody off: is the guy who owns the car, but wasn’t driving, the one who should pay the ticket, or the company who made the car, or what?

It’s all combined to keep robocars largely in experimental labs, even as Mercedes figures out how to control a car with Twitter and Google’s self driving car gets into fender benders.

But soon, cruise control might take on a whole new meaning, at least in Nevada: the state has just approved rules for robocars.

This doesn’t mean the next time you fly to Vegas, you’ll be picked up by a robotic limousine. Autonomous car manufacturers first need to test their vehicles on Nevada’s roads, and prove to the state that they’re not going to flatten little old ladies in the crosswalk or blow through red lights. Even then, it may only be approved for certain applications, like robotic bus service or after-hours mini-shuttles to and from hotels. But it does mean that we’re one step closer to that jerk who blows past you on the highway every day having his roll slowed by a robotic back seat driver.

And isn’t that a world we all want to live in?

Nevada Approves Rules for Self Driving Cars [PCMag]

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