It may not quite be the Jetsons’ flying cars, but commuters in California may soon be taking to the skies all the same.
The Golden State is looking into implementing flying taxis.
Archer Aviation, a company in San Jose, has entered into an agreement with Southwest Airlines to develop small planes that would be used to help commuters avoid some of the state’s notably bad traffic jams using four-passenger electric planes.
The planes would take off and land vertically the way helicopters do but their flying would be more akin to drones.
In a release, Archer Aviation referred to the flying taxi service as being faster, quieter and more efficient to land taxis or rideshares and said a 10- to 20-minute flight could replace 60- to 90-minute rides on the ground.
They also plan to create a network of air-taxi stops that would connect the 14 airports statewide that Southwest utilizes.