Washington, DC (CNN) Self-driving cars are headed to their biggest stage yet: Washington DC.

On Monday, Ford announced a partnership with the city's government to begin testing self-driving cars in early 2019. Ford's self-driving car startup, Argo AI, has already begun mapping the city. So far, self-driving cars have been tested mainly in suburbs and smaller cities.

Ford officials told CNN Business they were drawn to Washington DC because of its progressive mayor and a young population, which is likely to embrace new technologies such as autonomous vehicles. DC has been one of the earliest cities to embrace other transportation inventions such as dockless e-bikes and scooters

Ford plans to launch a self-driving ride service in 2021, and Washington DC will be its second launch city after Miami, where Ford is already testing.

The DC government embraced Ford because it promised to operate throughout the entire city, rather than catering to wealthy neighborhoods. Ford also agreed to partner with a workforce training center in an impoverished part of the city to help hire new test drivers to monitor the cars. Ford also said it will train residents for auto technician careers with a local non-profit.

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