Tech Trend 247

Self-driving Lyft cars might be hitting the streets sooner than anyone anticipated.

General Motors and Lyft are preparing to roll out a test fleet of autonomous long-range Bolt EV in a yet-to-be-determined city with in the next year, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Citing an unnamed Lyft executive, WSJ reports the exact plans are still being worked out.

When reached for comment, a GM representative told Mashable, "We have nothing specific to announce in relation to potential rollout of vehicles and technologies at this time.”

Adding, "GM continues to make progress on our previously announced plans related to an integrated on-demand autonomous network with Lyft. Similarly, we have said the Chevrolet Bolt EV is the ideal platform for ride sharing solutions. We believe electrification blends perfectly with autonomy when it comes to technology integration."

Intriguingly, this report sound awfully similar to a report we made earlier this year, in which GM President Dan Ammann spoke hypothetically about deploying self-driving cars with Lyft.

"We're going to have a car that operates only in downtown Austin that has a maximum speed of 30 mph and operates in controlled conditions," Ammann said.

Again, while he later clarified that was not a specific plan but rather an example of a potential roll out, it sounds like it might have actually been right on the money.

Regardless of when or how, it's been well known since GM invested $500 million into the ride-share company that the two aim to bring self-driving cars to the roads. I think no one expected it to happen quite this quickly, though.

Mashable reached out to Lyft for comment but has not received a response.

Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.

Carmakers, tech giants and ride-share companies are teaming up to make autonomous cars a reality in the U.S.

Ford, Volvo, Google, Lyft and Uber announced on Tuesday they had started the Self-Driving Coalition for Safer Streets, which will work to promote autonomous driving technology with lawmakers, regulators and the public.

The Coalition will be headed by David Strickland, former Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

“Self-driving vehicle technology will make America’s roadways safer and less congested," Strickland said in a release. "The best path for this innovation is to have one clear set of federal standards, and the Coalition will work with policymakers to find the right solutions that will facilitate the deployment of self-driving vehicles.”

While carmakers Volvo and Ford are keen to promote autonomy for safety reasons, the tech and ride-hailing companies likely have a slightly different agenda.

Specifically, Lyft and Uber want to own a fleet of self-driving cars, which would eliminate the financially and logistically messy need for human drivers.

Regardless of motive, autonomy will be a benefit for everyone. An estimated 94% of road accidents are caused by human error, according to the release, and there were 33,000 fatalities on America’s roads last year. Self-driving cars have the ability to significantly diminish that number.

BONUS: A manual to self-driving cars: How they work and where they're headed

Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.