California’s Governor Gavin Newsom signs a law that mandates all autonomous vehicles operating on the roads of California to be zero-emission by the end of 2030. This decision was made condensing the harmful effects greenhouse gases have on our environment.
Vehicle emission has been a global issue for quite some time. This new law would ensure better protection of our environment against harmful gases like nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, and many more.
Last year, Newsom signed another law that prohibits buying new gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles by 2035. This new law will push manufacturers to limit the sales of light-duty vehicles and encourage buyers to opt for self-driving zero emission vehicles in the near future.
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The head of global government affairs at Cruise, Prashanthi Raman, said to Engadget, “The AV industry is primed to lead the way in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in cities, and it’s why we’ve operated an all-electric, zero-emissions fleet from the start.”
She further mentioned that they are grateful to the California government for making zero emission vehicles standard in the automobile industry. Many car manufacturing companies like Cruise and Waymo have already successfully tested electric and hybrid autonomous vehicle taxis in the state.
This new law will ensure that in the coming future, autonomous vehicles don’t spread pollution like the way combustion engine vehicles have in the last few decades. Currently, autonomous cars have a small market share in California, with nearly 15 million operational vehicles.
With companies like Tesla, Nuro, and others, constantly developing new and improved self-driving vehicle technologies, a hike in the number of autonomous electric vehicles can be expected soon.
