Autonomous Buses Are Finally (Almost) Here

Autonomous Buses Are Finally (Almost) Here

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Autonomous cars and trucks, we are told, are just around the corner. Now, autonomous buses are, as well.

In a world-first, the Swiss city of Sion will prove a unique test-bed for a new type of transportation – the electric shuttle. BestMile, a startup founded by graduates of École Polytechnique Dédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), in association with researchers from their alma mater, have been hard at work to make the transportation of the future a reality today.

BestMile cofounder Anna Koymans says that “there is a lot of interest for driverless mobility solutions, partly thanks to Google.” BestMile have already participated in two European projects, but the new pilot-run will be the first time real life customers will use the platform.

BestMile is not out to compete with Google. While the latter develops general, all-purpose self-driving technology, Koymans and co. are working on what they term “the last mile issue” – bridging the gap between the last public transit stop and the final destination of the commuter. In semi-rural communities, where transport links are far from ideal, this problem makes public transit almost useless to some. Valerie Gerl, spokeswoman for PostBus – the operator with whom BestMile is teaming up for the experiment – said: “we want to see if this system will be appropriate to link places which aren’t currently served by public transport.”

The project should hit streets in the spring of 2016. During the initial test phase PostBus will run two driverless vehicles in Sion. The electric shuttle, build by French company Navya, with onboard logics developed by BestMile and EPFL researchers, will be able to provide an on-demand service for up to nine passengers.

If viable, their fleet-management system will soon be able to be deployed to city centres near you.

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