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Self-driving test site in Ypsilanti Township gets federal designation as proving ground

Federal designation for driverless car test site
Posted at 10:38 AM, Jan 20, 2017
and last updated 2017-01-20 11:26:49-05

A test site for driverless cars in Ypsilanti Township, now has federal designation as a proving ground for the development of driverless cars.

The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the classification to The American Center for Mobility, a test bed that's currently under construction. It's an area stretching 300 acres at a former General Motors plant at Willow run.  The price tag on developing the site is $80million, and it's one of 10 facilities in the U.S. that are part of the driverless testing program.

The site will include real-world environments with controlled conditions for testing. It will be available to private businesses, government agencies, and colleges and Universities.. Companies can lease office space, garages and other amenities. 

The location at the site of that former GM plant is where B-24 bombers were made during World War II.