Self-driving shuttles hit the road in Cambridge

The project is a join collaboration between Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP), Smart Cambridge, and Aurrigo, and was launched in 2018, with more passenger trials scheduled for June after this success. It is hoped that in the future autonomous shuttles might provide a more environmentally friendly and more reliable alternative to traditional public transport. 

David Keene, Chief Executive Officer of Aurrigo, said: “This is another major milestone in the journey towards making autonomous vehicles a reality on our roads. We’ve completed successful trials in city centres, in retirement complexes and at major golf tournaments, but this is the first time these vehicles will be sharing the route with everyday traffic. 

“The shuttles, which have been designed and manufactured at our Advanced Engineering Centre in Coventry, will operate the 20-minute journey around the West Cambridge route. They will run autonomously for the majority of the route using our in-house developed Auto-Stack driving software and the latest LIDAR and camera technology to identify potential hazards as they move around.” 

The shuttles have ten seats and were created by Aurrigo, an engineering firm in Coventry. The shuttles are not the most swift form of transport, with a maximum speed of 20mph, however they are fully electric and have an approximate range of 100 miles.

During the test drives there were operators ready to spring into action if manual control was needed, however the test went smoothly, and intervention was not needed. Similarly, if launched while the shuttles will not need a driver, a safety operator will be on board at all times.

Rachel Maclean, Transport Minister, said: "Self-driving vehicles present a number of opportunities for the UK from providing safer, greener and more reliable transport services to creating tens of thousands of well-paid and skilled jobs across the nation."