Driverless Cars Will Become Available in the UK

In the next 6 months, driverless cars will become available in the UK.

The British government has decided that in January 2015, it would allow driverless cars on Britain's roads. To get ready for this new initiative, the government is closely analyzing its roads to ensure that they are safe and ready for driverless cars.

"Today's announcement will see driverless cars take to our streets in less than six months, putting us at the forefront of this transformational technology and opening up new opportunities for our economy and society," says Vince Cable, the United Kingdom's business secretary. 

The British government will fund three British cities with £10 million, or $17 million, for a competition of testing the driverless cars. The testing will last anywhere between 18 to 36 months.

The UK's Department for Transport will conduct testing into two main areas of driverless car technology: fully autonomous cars that do not require drivers and cars that allow the driver to take control when necessary. The UK originally promised to test driverless cars on public roads before 2014. Because of that, driverless cars were being tested in private land.

The British government praised driverless cars' potential to make the roads safer and reducing road congestion, which would lower carbon emissions.

"Britain is brilliantly placed to lead the world in driverless technology," says the UK's science minister Greg Clark. "It combines our strengths in cars, satellites, big data, and urban design; with huge potential benefits for future jobs and for the consumer."

In America, driverless cars have been on many car manufacturers mind, especially since Google's announcement of their self-driving car project in 2010.

Google announced in May that it would build 100 prototypes of a self-driving car with a top speed of 25 M.P.H., no steering wheel and no brake and gas pedals. All it will have is buttons for go and stop.