In Wuhan, the taxi no longer has a driver

LETTER FROM WUHAN

The white car slows down then stops near the customer. To unlock the door, you must tap a four-digit code on the right rear window which is displayed on your smartphone when ordering the ride. On board, a voice reminds you that seat belts are essential. The steering wheel turns without a driver, the vehicle cautiously re-enters traffic, soon taking one of the immense eight-lane bridges that span the Yangzi River.

Driverless taxis have already been deployed or tested in several cities in the United States, but China is determined not to be left behind in the race for autonomous driving, which requires logging kilometers in real situations to perfect technologies. Trial programs have been launched in districts of Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing and Shenzhen, but none are more ambitious than that of Wuhan, where more than 400 Apollo Go cars, the autonomous VTC belonging to the engine of Baidu search, crisscross the city with the exception of the historic central district, the densest. At 3,000 square kilometers, it is the largest driverless car operating area in the world.

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