Local Motors opens Olli Fleet Challenge to Pacific Northwest

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Local Motors has announced that the Pacific Northwest will be the next location for its fleet challenge for the company’s autonomous shuttle, Olli.

According to Local Motors, entries will be accepted from across Washington state and Oregon.

The entry window for the Pacific Northwest opened on Monday, July 1, and will close August 26. Once a winner is chosen, engineers from Local Motors will map Olli’s autonomous route before the shuttles begin operating.

“Endless use possibilities exist for Olli, and we’ve seen that with recent deployments at college campuses, on a military base and at a busy state exposition and fairgrounds in California,” says Jay Rogers, Local Motors CEO and co-founder.

“Everything about Olli changes the way we can and will engage with transportation options, including its autonomous and sustainable design. We look forward to seeing how Olli can impact mobility across Washington and Oregon.”

Part of an “ongoing, first-of-its-kind global initiative,” the Olli Fleet Challenge invites municipalities, campuses and designated districts to propose a short-term, local use for Olli. Before an Olli fleet is deployed to a selected location, a panel of judges evaluates the entries.

Since launching the initiative late last year, Local Motors has hosted several challenges, and the company has deployed Olli shuttles across several locations in California, as well as along a busy thoroughfare in Australia.

Just a few weeks ago, a shuttle began operating at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall, which is an Army and Marine Corps joint base adjacent to Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C.