上海嘉定區(qū)獲批測試自動駕駛汽車

Shanghai has become the first Chinese city to issue permits allowing self-driving cars to carry passengers and freight on the city’s streets, a positive sign for companies hoping to monetise the technology in China.

上海成為發(fā)放示范應用牌照、允許自動駕駛汽車在該市街道上運送乘客和貨物的第一個中國城市，這對希望在中國商業(yè)化利用該技術的企業(yè)來說是一個積極跡象。

Chinese automaker SAIC motor group, Germany’s BMW and ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing have been granted a primary batch of “operational” licences to test a fleet of 50 cars in the Jiading district of Shanghai, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

據(jù)官方的新華社報道，中國汽車制造商上汽(SAIC)、德國寶馬(BMW)，以及網(wǎng)約車公司滴滴出行(Didi Chuxing)獲得首批智能網(wǎng)聯(lián)汽車示范應用牌照，用于在上海嘉定區(qū)測試50輛自動駕駛汽車。

The move, which saw the country do away for the first time with rules limiting companies to passengerless road tests, was a step towards allowing widespread adoption and commercialisation of autonomous driving in the city, Xinhua said.

據(jù)新華社報道，此舉意味著中國首次放開限制企業(yè)只能進行無乘客道路測試的規(guī)則，從而朝著允許在上海廣泛采用和商業(yè)化自動駕駛技術邁出一步。

Vehicles can then carry a cargo or volunteer passengers, but the trips cannot make a profit. If a company’s fleet of 50 vehicles operates for six months without incident, then they can apply to increase the number of vehicles.

參加測試的自動駕駛汽車可以運載貨物或志愿乘客，但不能借此盈利。如果一家公司的50輛自動駕駛汽車運行6個月不發(fā)生交通事故，那么該公司可以申請增加車輛數(shù)量。

The ability to deploy self-driving cars with passengers in Shanghai is a “big deal” because of the city’s size and complex driving environment, said Tu Le, of consultancy Sino Auto Insights.

咨詢公司Sino Auto Insights的涂樂表示，由于該市的規(guī)模和復雜行駛環(huán)境，上海允許自動駕駛汽車載客上路是一件“大事”。

“Part of getting [self-driving cars] on the road to commercialisation is acceptance by other drivers and this moves that forward,” Mr Le said.

“讓自動駕駛汽車走向商業(yè)化的一部分就是得到其他司機的接受，此舉朝著這個方向前進了一步，”涂樂表示。

Didi in August announced plans to launch a robotaxi fleet in Jiading district, which would give users of its ride-hailing service the option of taking a free self-driving car on certain routes.

滴滴出行在8月份宣布計劃在嘉定區(qū)推出一個機器人出租車車隊，為其叫車服務用戶提供在某些路線上免費搭乘自動駕駛汽車的選擇。

BMW, the first international automaker to be granted the permits in China, said the licences will allow them to demonstrate the real-world applications of their autonomous driving technologies.

寶馬是第一家獲得中國這種牌照的國際汽車制造商。該公司表示，這些牌照將使其能夠展示寶馬自動駕駛技術的實際應用。

“China has the most complicated traffic scenariosin the world”, making research in China an important part of the company’s autonomous driving development worldwide, the company said.

該公司表示，“中國有著世界上最復雜的交通場景”，這使在中國進行的研究成為該公司全球自動駕駛開發(fā)的重要組成部分。

Automakers have in recent years poured billions into developing autonomous driving, attempting to catch up with leaders such as Google’s Waymo, in expectation that the technology will upendglobal transportation.

汽車制造商近年投入巨額資金開發(fā)自動駕駛技術，試圖趕上谷歌(Google)旗下的Waymo等領軍者。各方預期該技術將顛覆全球交通運輸。

Many have seized upon robotaxis as a good bet to recoup investments, but the companies still face numerous regulatory hurdles to get to widespread adoption — let alone commercialisation — of the technology.

許多企業(yè)抓住機器人出租車作為收回投資的靠譜押注，但這些公司仍面臨眾多監(jiān)管障礙，才能讓該技術得到廣泛采用，更不用說商業(yè)化了。

The US has so far issued more testing licences than China for self-driving cars that can carry passengers, with cities including Phoenix, San Francisco, Detroit, Pittsburgh and Palo Alto already granting permits.

到目前為止，美國發(fā)放了比中國更多的讓自動駕駛汽車搭載乘客的測試牌照，比如鳳凰城、舊金山、底特律、匹茲堡和帕洛阿爾托等城市都已發(fā)放牌照。