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California Greenlights Testing Driverless Cars

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An Uber self-driving car drives down 5th Street on March 28, 2017 in San Francisco, California.  (Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

California has given the green light for companies to start testing truly driverless cars — that is autonomous vehicles without a front passenger who can take over during an emergency. The California Department of Motor Vehicles says safety is its top priority, but consumer advocates worry that systems simply aren’t ready for driverless vehicles. Meanwhile other analysts warn that while these vehicles offer hope for reducing traffic, they alone are not state’s transportation woes.

Guests:

Allison Arieff, contributing writer, New York Times

Jamie Court, president, Consumer Watchdog in Los Angeles

Nidhi Kalra, senior scientist and director, Rand’s San Francisco Bay Area office

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