Nissan driverless ride-sharing pilot next year

Nissan and tech company DeNA will do a driverless ride-sharing pilot project in Yokohama, Japan, on March 5-18.

People can ride in modified Nissan Leaf electric cars with self-driving technology, under the Easy Ride project. Volunteers are being signed on through the Easy Ride website until January 15.

Both companies expect autonomous ride sharing to supplement existing transportation services, allowing easier access to destinations not well served by other methods, The Drive reports.

Many firms prefer AV ride sharing over individual vehicle ownership because of the potential profits.
Self-driving cars stay on the road longer and a ride-sharing service gives automakers a way to continuously earn money off the cars throughout the vehicles’ lifespan, The Drive says.
Ride sharing also allows companies to control how self-driving cars are used.

Nissan launched ProPilot Assist in the US recently and will add more tech until full autonomy is reached.

Uber and Waymo autonomous cars are taking on passengers in some US cities, while General Motors intends having an AV ride-sharing service in 2019 and Ford aims to launch a driverless car in 2021.