WIRED's Top Transportation Stories of 2016

(upbeat music)

[Narrator] If you ever, you know, go places then 2016

has been a big year for you.

After 12 months of cars starting to drive themselves,

cities getting smarter, drones taking off, let's take

a look back at our five favorite transportation related

moments of the year.

First up, in September, Uber launched the country's first

fleet of autonomous taxis in Pittsburgh.

It's just a pilot program with human drivers at the wheel

for safety, but it's also a rare chance for regular citizens

to ride in the future.

[Driver] Here we go.

[Narrator] And it's our first real look at how on-demand

self driving transportation services will enter our lives.

But autonomy's about more than cars, it's about trucks too.

Which is great news, partly because trucks don't have

the best safety record and partly because sometimes

they carry beer.

In October, Otto, the self driving truck company Uber

bought this year made the world's first autonomous

commercial delivery hauling 50,000 cans of Budweiser

across Colorado, bottoms up.

Okay, you're probably bored by the word regulation.

But this one's important so listen up.

This summer, the feds finally released new rules easing

a lot of the major restrictions on flying drones

for commercial reasons.

The buzzing UAV's still don't have the right to drop Amazon

packages on your front lawn, but with this new regime

in place and written for a world of drones, it's likely

only a matter of time before that changes.

Of course tech giants aren't the only ones shaping

the future.

This year, the Department of Transportation pushed cities

to plan for a world where congestion is worse,

infrastructure is broken, and more people than ever

are trying to move around.

Columbus, Ohio snagged the 50 million dollar first prize,

but the dozens of cities that competed each get

a consolation gift.

They've already done the planning for the future.

Now they just need to make it happen.

(car engines roaring)

To round out the year, let's remember that the age

of gas power and human driving isn't over just yet.

In March, Bugatti revealed the Chiron, perhaps the most

extravagant car ever.

For just 2.6 million dollars, that's a base price of course,

you get 1500 horse power, 1200 pound feet of torch,

four turbo chargers, a top speed electronically limited

to 260 miles an hour and two seats.

The Chiron may be the high watermark of the first age

of the automobile, but it's also one hell of a closing back.