"Eastern China’s Hangzhou to test self-driving vehicles in downtown, urban areas"

From the South China Morning Post, May 1:

Eight main districts in Hangzhou including downtown Gongshu and Shangcheng, as well as Tonglu county, will be open for self-driving vehicle tests from May 1
Hangzhou’s initiative shows much-needed local government support for China’s autonomous-driving system developers

The municipal government of Hangzhou, the capital of eastern Zhejiang province, is looking to help step up China’s autonomous transport ambitions by opening the city’s main urban areas to self-driving vehicles starting from this year’s May Day holiday.

Eight main districts in the city including downtown Gongshu and Shangcheng, as well as Tonglu county – covering an area of 3,474 square kilometres – will be made available to pilot tests of self-driving vehicles from Wednesday, according to a report by local outlet Qianjiang Evening News.

This new initiative by Hangzhou forms part of a new municipal policy to bolster the application of “intelligent connected vehicles” within the city, helping China’s move towards a driverless future....

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