Instead of a human grabbing the wheel to help a self-driving shuttle in a jam, a university is looking to remote drivers. Oregon-based teleoperations company Designated Driver is working with Texas A&M University's self-driving shuttles in downtown Bryan, Texas, to remotely control the ride on a fixed half-mile route through the town's shopping district. TAMU and the city of Bryan launched the shuttles last year with a safety driver and safety navigator in the front driver and passenger seats. With Designated Driver coming in with its cameras and communication system, only the safety navigator is needed – mostly for checking on passengers and making sure everyone's buckled up. SEE ALSO: This is what it's like to control an autonomous car from miles away Designated Driver CTO Walter Sullivan said in a phone call this week that with the new set-up it's "driving remotely but almost as if they're in the vehicle."