October 23, 2018—Ford on Monday announced a partnership with Washington, D.C. to begin testing self-driving cars in early 2019, reported CNN.
Ford's self-driving car startup, Argo AI, has already begun mapping the city. So far, self-driving cars have been tested mainly in suburbs and smaller cities, according to the report.
Ford plans to launch a self-driving ride service in 2021 and Washington, D.C. will be its second launch city after Miami. The company is already testing in Miami.
According to CNN, D.C.'s local government embraced Ford because it promised to operate throughout the entire city, rather than catering to wealthy neighborhoods. Ford also agreed to partner with a workforce training center in an impoverished part of the city to help hire new test drivers to monitor the cars.
