Government and RAC worked together to set up the on-road test
For the first time in Australia, an autonomous bus has taken to the streets, with Perth being the staging ground for the trial.
The Automobile Club of Western Australia (RAC) has named the vehicle ‘Intellibus’ and have released a video showing tests for accuracy, with some for merging and stopping to follow.
In another very optimistic video, RAC says widespread use of autonomous vehicles could be only a few years away.
The Intellibus was first tested in a closed environment to ensure its systems were all functional in different conditions.
The bus is in the public stage of testing, a on-road trial during which people are to ride the bus.
This stage will be closely controlled, though the bus will be interacting with traffic.
RAC CEO Terry Agnew says this is only one step in developing driverless vehicle technology.
“We anticipate this first step in exploring driverless technology will start a conversation on further trials, research and collaboration, which will increase Western Australia’s understanding of how driverless vehicles can integrate into our transport system,” Agnew says.
“The RAC Intellibus, which can transport up to 11 passengers and will operate at an average speed of 25km per hour, will make RAC members and the broader WA community some of the first people in the world to experience a driverless vehicle in action.”
RAC also released the results for a survey it conducted, which shows 43 per cent of respondents feel the government of WA should be investing more in autonomous vehicles, while 49 per cent don’t think their government will be ready by 2025.
RAC is now accepting commuter registrations to be part of the Intellibus trial.
Photography: Supplied (RAC) | Video: Supplied (RAC)