GM's Cruise starts charging fares for driverless rides in San Francisco

A Cruise self-driving car, which is owned by General Motors Corp, is seen outside the company’s headquarters in San Francisco
A Cruise self-driving car, which is owned by General Motors Corp, is seen outside the company?s headquarters in San Francisco where it does most of its testing, in California, U.S., September 26, 2018. REUTERS/Heather Somerville/File Photo

June 23 (Reuters) - General Motors Co's (GM.N) Cruise has started charging fares for driverless rides in San Francisco, the company said on Thursday, a step towards commercialization of the service.

Cruise earlier this month became the first company to secure a permit to charge for self-driving car rides in the U.S. city, after it overcame objections by local officials. read more

Self-driving test cars with human safety drivers have become a constant sight in San Francisco, and completely driverless ones are increasingly common too. Turning them into a fledgling business in a major U.S. city marks a milestone in the long, delayed journey toward driverless taxi service.

The fared driverless rides are currently taking place in the northwest third of the city, the self-driving tech firm said on Thursday, adding that it would expand the service.

Reporting by Tiyashi Datta in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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