So would you get on a bus with no driver?
THE first driverless shuttle bus in Ireland will make its debut in Dublin’s Docklands next month.
The EasyMile EZ10 will operate a route of nearly 1km with four stops along the River Liffey quays from the Dublin Convention Centre to the 3Arena.
The event, organised by Dublin City Council, takes place on September 21 and 22, and may lead to a more permanent driverless bus service in Dublin.
The bus has a capacity of 15 people and features a built-in access ramp for passengers with reduced mobility. The EZ10 is in daily operation in the US, Holland, China and Estonia. It will run in Dublin during the Future Mobility Showcase, which will feature other urban transport ideas such as e-bikes and car clubs.
‘Dublin City Council, through its Smart City programme and the Smart Docklands testbed district, is encouraging a debate on the future of transport and mobility in the city,’ said Owen Keegan, chief executive of Dublin City Council.
The electric vehicle, which has smart technologies including advanced cameras, processors, and sensors, will not need additional road infrastructure to work. Neil Cunningham, CEO of the bus’s creator Civic Group, said that permanent driverless transport will help reduce stress during rush hour. ‘Futurists predict that by 2025 or 2030, autonomous vehicles will be sufficiently convenient and affordable to displace most human-operated vehicles, providing independent mobility to non-drivers, reducing the stress and tedium of driving, and be a solution for congestion, accident and pollution problems’. The Future Mobility Showcase will be open to the public as part of a wider European Mobility Week taking place at that time. There will be an opportunity to take a free trip on the shuttle from 2pm to 5pm on Friday, September 21, and between 11am and 5pm on September 22. It’s understood that there will be an expert from the EZ10’s manufacturer, EasyMile, on the bus to make sure it runs smoothly.