A California-based aviation company is offering reservations for a flying car, while Uber has been ordered to pay $8.5 million in a sexual assault case, and conservation efforts have led to the resurgence of a Bermuda snail previously thought extinct. These are among the latest developments making headlines.
Pivotal, a company based in Palo Alto, is taking reservations for its electric vertical take-off and landing vehicle, the Helix, with deliveries potentially beginning in less than a year, according to Fox News. The vehicle is available for purchase, with a price tag of around $190,000.
In other news, a US court ordered Uber to pay $8.5 million to a woman who claimed she was raped by an Uber driver, as reported by both BBC Technology and BBC Business. The jury in Arizona found Uber responsible for the driver's behavior. Uber has stated its intention to appeal the verdict. The plaintiff, Jaylynn Dean, said she was sexually assaulted while taking an Uber. The ruling could influence thousands of other cases against the ride-sharing company. The jury rejected additional claims that Uber was negligent and that its safety systems were defective.
In environmental news, a button-sized snail, the greater Bermuda snail (Poecilozonites bermudensis), once believed extinct, is now thriving in Bermuda, according to The Guardian. Conservationists bred and released over 100,000 of the molluscs after the species was found in the fossil record. The snails were thought to have vanished from the North Atlantic archipelago until a remnant population was discovered. Special pods at Chester Zoo helped conservationists in their efforts.
Additionally, reports from National Highways indicate that many smart motorways are not delivering the expected value for money, as reported by BBC Business. Two schemes, including sections of the M25 and M6, were found to be offering "very poor" value. Only three out of sixteen projects across England were on track to deliver the financial benefits originally anticipated. The AA, representing motorists, described the schemes as a "catastrophic waste of time, money and effort."
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