Rural Minnesota Towns Consider Driverless Car Technology

GRAND RAPIDS (AP) _ A researcher says rural Minnesota residents could benefit from driverless cars.

Minnesota Public Radio News reports that Frank Douma from the University of Minnesota created a task force last year to examine how to give residents across the state access to self-driving vehicles.

Douma says that while many think of driverless vehicles being a possibility in cities or suburbs, he says they could also benefit rural communities. He says people who can't drive because of disabilities or financial obstacles, as well as older drivers could benefit from self-driving technologies.

Douma predicts such vehicles could be on the road by 2025 or 2030. He says the vehicles could improve the state's rural transit systems and cut down on recruitment and drivers' salary expenses.