Canada Finally Joins The Self-Driving Bandwagon, Autonomoose On The Road

The rest of the world is quickly racing towards a fully autonomous driving future, so it only makes sense that Canada would join in on what’s being considered an inevitable trend. Hitting the roads of Ontario will be several vehicles from local research groups, equipping vehicles with the self-driving technology that they made themselves.

The Ontario autonomous project was actually announced back in January 1st of this year, Digital Trends reports, but it seems that automakers weren’t exactly tripping over themselves to join. In fact, it wasn’t until this week that enough groups decided to participate, one of which is throwing in a machine called Autonomoose. Classy, right?

University of Waterloo is responsible for the entry, which is actually a Lincoln MKZ hybrid equipped with custom self-driving technology. Others on the list include the Erwin Hymer Group, which is testing out its own version with a Mercedes-Benz Sprinter, and the QNX division of BlackBerry, which is also using a Lincoln.

Considering that Ontario is the Canadian province where automakers are congregated, it’s a bit sad that it took so long for even three of them to throw in their lot in testing new technology. Then again, the phrase “better late than never” applies here, which presents the northern country with a great opportunity to join the rest of the world in this global endeavor.

As for the project itself, the groups are allowed to test their vehicles out on public roads, but they need to be accompanied by a driver. Ontario is a perfect test bed thanks to its large population as well, Engadget notes.

It’s a chance for the engineers to fine-tune their machines to respond to crowded roads, which is something that even veteran companies like Tesla Motors are still having trouble with. All the vehicles are armed to the gills with an array of cameras and sensors, which is standard when it comes to autonomous driving.