Tesla update lets vehicles drive through green lights automatically

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Tesla’s Autopilot feature gets a new trick. Autopilot will soon be able to drive through green lights automatically, even if there is no other car in front of the vehicle, Electrek reports.

As with previous implementations of Autopilot software, Tesla is careful. With “Traffic Light and Stop Sign Check”, Teslas can only drive through an intersection without a car in front if the vehicle is on a clear, straight path.

In some, but not all cases, Autopilot may ask the driver to confirm that the vehicle can pass the intersection. For example, it requires a confirmation if the vehicle has already stopped when the light turns green. In other cases, the driving line visualization will turn green and the vehicle will automatically drive across the intersection. This is somewhat like the way Tesla rolled out its Autopilot lane switching feature, which required driver confirmation first.

Earlier this year, a video showed that Tesla’s Autopilot automatically stops at red light, so autonomous travel through green light is the next logical evolution. Tesla is expected to release a “fundamental rewrite” of its Autopilot software by the end of the year. Those changes should allow Tesla to introduce new features more quickly.

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This Christine Fisher story originally appeared on Engadget.

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