GM puts self-driving vehicle without steering wheel on hold

[July 23, 2024]  By David Shepardson
 
(Reuters) -General Motors' Cruise self-driving unit will focus its development efforts on a next-generation Chevrolet Bolt rather than its planned futuristic Origin vehicle that would not have a steering wheel or other human controls, the automaker said.  

A Cruise self-driving car, which is owned by General Motors Corp, is seen outside the company’s headquarters in San Francisco where it does most of its testing, in California, U.S., September 26, 2018. Picture taken on September 26, 2018. REUTERS/Heather Somerville/File Photo

In 2022, GM filed a petition with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration seeking permission to deploy up to 2,500 self-driving Origin vehicles annually without human controls like brake pedals or mirrors. The agency still has not acted on the request.

"GM and Cruise are optimizing resources to focus development of our next autonomous vehicle on the next generation Bolt instead of the Origin," a GM spokesperson said on Tuesday.

"This shift creates a more cost-effective and scalable option for pursuing an autonomous future faster, while avoiding the uncertain path to regulatory compliance in the U.S. that could impede scaling of the Origin."

GM in November said it had temporarily halted production of its fully autonomous Cruise Origin. Cruise told employees in November the company has produced hundreds of Origin vehicles already, and that it is "more than enough for the near-term when we are ready to ramp things back up."

Cruise faces a number of investigations - including by NHTSA, the Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission - after an October accident in which one of its robotaxis struck a pedestrian and dragged her 20 feet. Cruise and GM came under heavy criticism after the accident, and the California Department of Motor Vehicles revoked its permit to operate driverless vehicles.

In 2018, GM petitioned the NHTSA to allow the use of a car built on a Chevrolet Bolt without steering wheels or brake pedals on U.S. roads. In 2020, GM withdrew the petition after the agency took no action.

GM CEO Mary Barra noted Tuesday that Cruise in recent months had resumed testing of its robotaxis with human safety drivers in Phoenix, Houston and Dallas and in June hired a new CEO.

She said the under revised plan "per-unit costs will be much lower, which will help Cruise optimize its resources."

Barra previously said the business could generate $50 billion in annual revenue by 2030. Cruise has lost more than $8 billion since 2017 and in January GM said it was cutting spending at Cruise by about $1 billion.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarisee)

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