Car2Go pulls out of Toronto, new details emerge about Uber’s self-driving car that killed a woman in March, and Elon Musk gets roasted online after bashing the media, saying he plans to create a website evaluating journalists credibility.
On Facebook – Following a Toronto City Council decision to force new car-sharing pilots to pay $1,500 per vehicle, Car2Go is suspending its Toronto operations starting June. Car2Go has been operating in Toronto since 2016, when it made its vehicles more accessible by introducing an on-street parking option. It resulted in a 51 per cent increase in membership, and the service was used by 80,000 Torontonians. In a statement sent out Thursday morning, Mayor John Tory said he believes there can be many benefits to car-sharing programs, but that restrictions should still exist. The company says it will consider returning to the city if Toronto follows in the footsteps of other global cities that don’t restrict on-street parking.
On LinkedIn – Preliminary results of a National Transportation Safety Board investigation in the U.S. show Uber’s self-driving car system detected an Arizona woman about six seconds before the car collided and killed her. The safety board’s report says Uber’s system was working normally on the 2017 Volvo XC90, but that according to Uber, emergency braking maneuvers are not turned on while the vehicle is under computer control to reduce the potential for erratic vehicle behavior. The system is not designed to alert the operator, who is supposed to intervene in those types of situations.
And lastly, on Facebook – Elon Musk’s to-do list just got longer. The Tesla, SpaceX and Boring Company founder wants to create a media credibility rating website named Pravda, which is Russian for truth. Musk tweeted about his idea following negative press coverage over a report on Tesla’s safety issues at the company’s factories. Members of the media were quick to react, calling Musk thin-skinned and suggesting he doesn’t understand how investigative journalism works.
That’s what’s trending this week. Hashtag Trending is produced by the ITWC Podcast Network. If you enjoy Hashtag Trending, please be sure to give us a rating and a review on Amazon, Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever else you get your podcasts from.