By RFD Radio/WFMB

SPRINGFIELD – Illinois Transportation Secretary Randy Blankenhorn and his agency are looking to the future of driving in Illinois and a big part of that future involves vehicles without drivers.

Blankenhorn said driverless vehicles like the ones operated by Google in recent years aren’t just an experiment, it’s a movement that is gaining traction and he wants Illinois to be ahead of the curve.

“Autonomous vehicles are here, it’s not the Jetsons anymore and I think we have to figure out what it means for us and how people are going to travel in the future,” Blankenhorn said.

Blankenhorn added wants Illinois to become a test market for autonomous vehicles. He says he wants to see Illinois become a test market for driverless cars in hopes it will lead to spin-off business for the state.

“We are working and reaching out not only to our public sector partners, how do we deal with licensing for example with the Secretary of State, how do we deal with enforcement with Illinois State Police?,” Blankenhorn said.

Blankenhorn said some freight companies are talking with his agency about future use of autonomous vehicles in the state.

Eric Stock can be reached at [email protected].