The pilot scheme has been set up by NuTonomy, a company that span out of MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology).
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Auto makers and technology companies have been working hard to make autonomous driving a reality. For now, the cars will be puttering along the streets of the city’s 2.5-square-mile “one-north” business and residential district.
The passengers that’ll use these self-driving cars during the trial have already been chosen, as local residents were asked to apply to join the pilot scheme before they could request a vehicle.
Beginning today, select Singapore residents will be invited to take a spin in nuTonomy’s self-driving taxis. Meanwhile, BMW partnered with autonomous driving company Mobileye to put driverless cars on the road around the same time frame.
As it is not a auto manufacturer, nuTonomy has actually decked out small Mitsubishi and Renault vehicles with its own complex laser software and cameras to aid them as they make their way around the 4 sq km area in western Singapore.
Through its own trials, nuTonomy intends to collect and evaluate valuable data related to software system performance, vehicle routing efficiency, vehicle booking process, and overall passenger experience which can help the company to be prepared for a full-fledged launch. Each auto is fitted with a detection system, as well as two cameras that look out for obstacles.
While the plan is for the robo-taxis’ software to make all decisions on the movement of the vehicles, there will be a nuTonomy engineer riding in the front seat to take control if needed.
For now pick and drop is limited to specific locations and users must have an invitation from nuTonomy to use the service.
“The technology is maturing to a point where commercial services are becoming possible once you’re able to prove the reliability and safety”, said Doug Parker, chief operating officer of nuTonomy.
Iagnemma says that they chose Singapore for their testing area because it has good weather, quality infrastructure, and drivers who tend to obey traffic laws – an ideal spot to test autonomous vehicles.
“I think it will change how people interact with the city going forward”.
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He hopes the company’s leadership in autonomous driving will eventually lead to partnerships with automakers, tech companies, logistics businesses and others.
