UK rolls out world's first self-driving public bus service

Britain will roll out its first network of self-driving buses in Scotland next week, but drivers will remain in the driver's seat ready to intervene in an emergency. It will be the world's first driverless public bus service.

Britain is to roll out its first self-driving bus network in Scotland.

Bus operator Stagecoach said the network of five single-decker buses would carry 10,000 passengers a week along a 22.5km route.

Stagecoach policy director Peter Stevens said while self-driving technology has been trialled before, this is the first time driverless buses have been introduced to a local bus network. He said the bus service would be safer, more fuel efficient and provide a better experience for passengers. Once the self-driving bus service is operational, Stagecoach will collect more data and then increase the number of trips.

The self-driving buses are expected to travel at speeds of up to 80 km/h from May 15. Each bus will still have a driver on board to supervise it, in accordance with UK law, which does not allow fully autonomous vehicles to operate. However, the driver will not intervene in the control system when the vehicle is in automatic mode. There will also be a ticket inspector on board to handle issues related to tickets and passengers.

The control system on the self-driving bus uses artificial intelligence (AI), receiving information from devices installed throughout the car to detect other vehicles to avoid collisions, while radars and optical cameras scan the street image, thereby determining the exact location and calculating the safest route.

(According to News)

VinFast VF5 Plus belongs to segment A, is cheap but has many advanced driving support features. Photo: TT

Many low-cost car models in Vietnam are gradually being equipped with driving assistance technology, helping drivers avoid collisions and accidents on the road.

Besides the unique design, the compactness and equipment are what users love about this scooter model.

Using electric vehicles is considered one of the solutions to promote the transition to clean and renewable energy, while contributing to reducing emissions. Therefore, many new policies are being introduced in countries, as well as at the regional level, to widely "cover" electric vehicles in the near future.