Automotive News Canada - September 2017 - v2 - 6

* S E P T E M B E R 2017

Calgary, Edmonton battle
for autonomous foothold
The cities might
be getting a late
start, but auto-tech
companies 'love this
area' for the climate
and terrain variety
By HARRY PEGG

CALGARY CORRESPONDENT

CALGARY CITY COUNCIL HAS
perhaps fuelled a new level in
the ongoing rivalry with sister-city Edmonton by unanimously approving a motion seeking to
establish Calgary as a centre for
AV testing, joining the capital
city in the desire to become a test
bed for the new technology.
The notice of motion approved
in late June asks city bureaucrats to assess the pros and cons
of turning city streets into a test
area for autonomous vehicles.
That means city administration will now team with Calgary
Economic Development and consult with the province. Council is
scheduled to receive a report by
the end of the year.
Turning the city into a test
centre for autonomous-vehicle
technology requires permission
from the province. If there's value
in the idea, the notice of motion
enables the city to ask the province to introduce legislation to
allow driverless vehicles to legally operate on city streets.
Councillor Richard Pootmans
called it "a taste of the future"
although he said that Calgary

might be a bit late to the party.
"Ontario has been at this for
about a year and a half, and about
18 [U.S.] states are doing it as
well."
He said manufacturers, tech
vendors and suppliers have said
they "love this area for the same
reason the film industry does: We
have a variety of climates and a
variety of landscapes."
Meanwhile, Edmonton is
already planning a partnership
with the University of Alberta
to set up a test track to evaluate
light-duty shuttles.
Edmonton Economic
Development Corp. CEO Brad
Ferguson called it "a billion-dollar opportunity if we choose to
play in this sector."
The Calgary plan is scheduled
to go before city council in the fall
when it debates a new budget.

SURVEY SAYS
Meanwhile, a study from the
University of Calgary's Schulich
School of Engineering suggests
that men over 50 are most likely
to welcome a ride in a driverless
vehicle.
The survey of 485 people over
the age of 18 from Calgary and
Edmonton was conducted by
graduate student Masha Ghaffari.
It also indicates people who spend
10 to 20 hours a week behind the
wheel of a vehicle are three times
as likely to turn to an autonomous vehicle.
People without children and
those who have driven for more
than 35 years expressed greater
comfort with automation.
"Perhaps they're tired of rush-

Drivers in Calgary, pictured, and Edmonton were questioned
in a University of Calgary survey that found people were
generally more accepting of an autonomous vehicle for tasks
such as commuting. ( P H O T O : H A R R Y P E G G )

hour traffic congestion or driving that many hours," she said,
adding that the figures are more
skewed to the male side "because
it's been proved they're more the
risk takers."
The online survey looked for
responses via social media that
naturally brings the most replies
from a younger audience. Only 35
responses were from men 55 and
older, and just nine from women
in that age group. Ghaffari
weighted the results based on
Alberta census data to make the
results representative.

COMFORT LEVELS
She found that people are
comfortable with current technologies such as navigation and
cruise control, with 81 per cent
having a very high degree of confidence in a computer choosing
the route, and 40 per cent OK
with computer-controlled speed.
Ghaffari said people were generally more accepting of an autonomous vehicles for tasks such as
commuting: "Drivers who drive
more in the week are particularly comfortable" with the idea of
using self-driving cars, she said,
"perhaps because it could free
up time on their commute to do
something else instead of focus on
driving."
The study is one of several
recent ones to focus on autonomous vehicles. A survey of
2,000 Canadians by Open Text, a
Waterloo, Ont.-based tech company, showed that 57 per cent of
respondents thought autonomous
vehicles would make roads safer.
- ANC

TRENDING
STORIES
automotivenews.ca

DEALERSHIPS NARROW THE GAP WITH
NON-DEALERS IN SERVICE SATISFACTION

Canadians are still more satisfied by the aftermarket service
they receive at non-dealer shops than at dealerships, but not by
much, according to a new survey by J.D. Power Canada.
On a 1,000-point scale, dealers trail non-dealers in overall
customer satisfaction 761 to 767.
When it comes to ratings for service advisor performance
- that is, the face-to-face interaction between employee and
customer - in people skills and knowledge, non-dealer service
advisers outperform their dealership counterparts in every category on a 10-point scale, including courtesy, responsiveness,
thoroughness of explanation and the adviser's knowledge

TESLA SAYS COMPLETION OF CANADA'S
SUPERCHARGER NETWORK IS DELAYED

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has pushed back the completion date
of a planned supercharger network designed to connect Canada
from east to west.
Musk tweeted a reply
to a follower on Twitter
Aug. 27 that the network
would be complete "next
year...along with completing the Trans-Canada
Highway and interconnecting U.S., Mexico and
Central America."
( P H O T O : G R E G L AY S O N )
That Canadian timeline is later than the one he originally promised in May on
Twitter. At that time, in a response to a different follower, he
indicated 2017.
"Should finish trans-Canada this year. A stop in Swift Current
for sure!" Musk tweeted May 27.

NISSAN PICKS CANADIAN TO LEAD INFINITI
DIVISION AS SALES GROWTH CONTINUES

Nissan Canada has promoted a Canadian, Adam Paterson,
to steer the company's expanding Infiniti luxury brand.
Paterson, 36, replaced Stephen
Lester, managing director of Infiniti
Canada, Sept. 4, the automaker
said in a statement. Lester, 37, is
also Canadian and will lead Nissan
Australia, also effective Sept. 4.
Paterson has been with Nissan
Canada for six years, holding several positions with the Nissan and
Infiniti brands. Most recently he was
Nissan regional general manager for
Western Canada. He has also been
chief marketing manager for Infiniti
(PHOTO: NISSAN)
Canada.
Paterson will be based in Toronto and report to Randy Parker,
vice president of Infiniti Americas.

NISSAN CANADA OFFERS LONG-TERM
LOANERS OVER TAKATA RECALL

Nissan Canada is taking the uncommon measure of offering
long-term "alternate transportation" to Nissan owners affected by
the latest round of Takata-airbag recalls.
The automaker said
in July it was recalling
111,141 Versa cars from
the model years 2007,
pictured, through 2012
because new testing
prompted Takata Corp. to
declare millions more airbag inflators defective.
(PHOTO: NISSAN)
Replacement parts aren't
expected to be available until 2018, so the automaker is offering loaner replacement Nissan vehicles to owners who don't
feel comfortable driving their vehicle equipped with faulty Takata
parts.
If Versa owners don't have room to park or store their vehicle and a replacement vehicle at the same time, "customers can
also discuss with their Nissan dealer regarding vehicle storage,
when applicable," Nissan said.

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Automotive News Canada - September 2017 - v2