GM to Double Super Cruise Network, Add Road Types
GM announced today that they will soon double the number of miles of roads in the US and Canada that are compatible with their Super Cruise self driving technology.
The update will initially be limited to vehicles built on GM’s VIP electrical architecture, this includes the CT4 and CT5, Escalade, and LYRIQ EV.
Additionally, this marks the first move to add roads to the self-driving network that are not divided highways. Significantly, GM is adding sections of US Route 66, California’s Pacific Coast Highway (CA 1), Florida’s Overseas Highway (US Route 1), and the Trans-Canada highway.
This raises the total number of miles of Super Cruise roads over 400,000.
Super Cruise is one of the only autonomous driving systems that allows for true hands-free driving due to interior sensors that monitor driver attention and do not require physical contact with the steering wheel in order to determine that the driver is paying attention to the road ahead.
Press Release below:
DETROIT - General Motors announced today that Super Cruise, the industry’s first true hands-free driver assistance technology, will soon be expanded so that it works on even more roads, giving customers greater accessibility to hands-free driving. By doubling the Super Cruise road network, hundreds of thousands of additional miles of roads in the U.S. and Canada can be explored hands-free.
For new vehicles in the GM portfolio built on the VIP electrical architecture, the expansion will be available later this year and will be delivered at no additional charge, over-the-air starting in 2022 on Super Cruise-equipped models.
Super Cruise currently works on mapped divided highways, known as interstates. This expansion will enable Super Cruise to work on many additional state and federal routes, a combination of undivided and divided highway roads. A few notable routes with large sections coming online with this expansion include:
The Mother Road – U.S. Route 66
Pacific Coast Highway – CA Route 1
Overseas Highway – U.S. Route 1
Trans-Canada Highway
"GM is all in when it comes to accessible advanced driver assistance technology. We are adding Super Cruise to more vehicles than ever, and on more roads for more customers to experience,” said Mario Maiorana, GM chief engineer, Super Cruise. “We are pursuing what we believe to be the most comprehensive path to autonomy in the industry with responsible deployment of automated driving technology like Super Cruise at the core of what we do.”
When Super Cruise is engaged, the vehicle’s precision LiDAR map data, real-time cameras, radars and GPS keep the vehicle traveling along the lane path for a hands-free driving experience. These systems work together through “sensor fusion” to create a sensory field around the vehicle that assists in keeping it centered in the lane while elevating the driver’s comfort and convenience.
Super Cruise accelerates or brakes the vehicle to maintain a selected following gap from a vehicle ahead, steers to maintain lane position, and on select models when offered, can perform both driver and system-initiated lane changes to pass slower traffic and to move from a lane that may be ending, while monitoring the driver’s head position and/or eyes in relation to the road to help ensure driver attention.