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Ford: Detroit train station key to autonomous vehicle plans

Ford: Detroit train station key to autonomous vehicle plans

By manilabulletin_admin

By the Associated Press

DETROIT (AP) -- Bill Ford looks past the tons of paint, plaster and steel needed to remake Detroit's blighted Michigan Central train station and sees more than just an iconic building in desperate need of a makeover.

In this Thursday, June 14, 2018 photo, Bill Ford Jr., Ford Motor Company Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board, poses in the Michigan Central Station in Detroit. Ford Motor Co. is embarking on a 4-year renovation of the 105-year-old depot and 17-story office tower just west of downtown. The massive project is expected to increase the automaker’s footprint in the city where the company was founded, provide space for electric and autonomous vehicle testing and research and spur investment in the surrounding neighborhood. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya/ MANILA BULLETIN)

In this Thursday, June 14, 2018 photo, Bill Ford Jr., Ford Motor Company Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board, poses in the Michigan Central Station in Detroit. Ford Motor Co. is embarking on a 4-year renovation of the 105-year-old depot and 17-story office tower just west of downtown. The massive project is expected to increase the automaker’s footprint in the city where the company was founded, provide space for electric and autonomous vehicle testing and research and spur investment in the surrounding neighborhood. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya/ MANILA BULLETIN)

The executive chairman of Ford Motor Co. and great-grandson of founder Henry Ford envisions the future of the carmaker's foray into self-driving vehicles.

Ford Motor Co. is embarking on a four-year renovation of the 105-year-old depot and 17-story office tower just west of downtown. The massive project is expected to increase the automaker's footprint in the city where the company was founded, provide space for electric and autonomous vehicle testing and research and spur investment in the surrounding neighborhood.

The company has said it wants an autonomous vehicle on the market in 2021.

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