Self-driving cars are officially coming to NYC

After years spent talking about the arrival of self-driving cars in NYC, we're officially one step closer to them becoming our reality.

Last week, Mayor Eric Adams and New York City Department Transportation (DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez announced the debut of a new permit program that will allow interested companies to "unleash" their futuristic cars across New York City streets. Alongside the new guidelines, officials also released a new set of "requirements for responsible and safe autonomous vehicle (AV) testing."

"New York City leads the nation in responsible innovation, and we’re continuing to do so with this new autonomous vehicle program," the mayor said in an official statement. "Our streets are vibrant and energetic—and that’s a great thing, but it also means that we need to have strong guardrails and requirements in place on any sort of autonomous vehicles. [...] This technology is coming whether we like it or not, so we’re going to make sure that we get it right. If we do, our streets can be safer, and our air could be cleaner."

To note: during the current testing phase, all self-driving cars will be required to have a real human in them, just in case they have to take control of the vehicle in case of emergency. Said humans will have to go through background checks and submit to proper training. 

No announcement has yet been made about timelines, so we can't tell you exactly when these novel vehicles will start roaming the streets but, if cities like San Francisco, where similar programs have already been implemented, are of any indication, we should be hearing about some updates within the next year or so.