“Driverless cars have rolled into New York City, finally.

But don’t expect to see them traveling down Fifth Avenue anytime soon.

The cars have been corralled behind the gates of the sprawling Brooklyn Navy Yard — away from city streets teeming with cars, bikes and pedestrians.

The cars will begin shuttling people on Wednesday around a loop that is just over one mile at the yard, a 300-acre, privately operated manufacturing and technology hub.

They will run seven days a week to meet passengers going to and from a recently opened ferry landing. There is no charge for a ride and anyone can hop in.

Autonomous vehicles have been heralded as the next revolution in transportation, promising to move people and goods far more efficiently than cars dependent on drivers.

Advocates say the self-driving technology can be harnessed to increase the reliability and safety of taxis, Ubers and buses, as well as to make truck deliveries and to operate construction machinery. They also say it can reduce the need for personal cars and parking spaces in congested cities.

But some of this enthusiasm waned after a woman walking a bicycle on a street in Tempe, Ariz., was fatally struck last year by a self-driving car being tested by Uber. It was the first known pedestrian death involving a self-driving vehicle, though three Tesla drivers also have died in the last several years in crashes that happened after an autopilot driver-assistance system was activated.

And self-driving cars that rely on gas will still spew greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.

Still, autonomous vehicles continue to be tested in more than a dozen communities around the country, according to Samuel I. Schwartz, a transportation consultant and author of “No One at the Wheel.” He added that almost all of these self-driving cars are confined to enclosed areas, though a few have operated on a limited basis on public roads.”

Read the full article on the New York Times here.