There is a race to put self driving cars on the road in North America: how will it be regulated?
OTTAWA — Under the California sun, Marc Garneau pressed a button to let a car take him for a spin as part of a joy ride that was more business than pleasure.
While much attention this week went to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s trip to Washington and Mexico to save North American free trade talks, the transport minister and two senators quietly travelled to Silicon Valley to meet officials from one of the world’s biggest tech companies.
The race to put more self-driving cars on North American roads has meant Garneau is now moving quickly to craft regulations so his government doesn’t fall behind the curve, even if the technology may not be fully ready for another 10, 20 or 30 years.
Garneau has already travelled to Waterloo, Ont., as part of that work, but he and his team made the decision that it was important to go to the epicentre of the technological change at Tesla’s facility near San Francisco.