Driverless taxi carries passenger on a British street for the first time
Driverless cars are being tested in the south of London by a company which won’t reveal where they will be.
Fiveai is today beginning road tests of its self-driving technology in the boroughs of Bromley and Croydon.
The company says its cars will be ferrying commuters around the boroughs for the next two months, but hasn’t released any details of the 12-mile loop they’ll use.
They will be making more than three journeys per day on ‘multiple’ days per week, the company told Mailonline, but it wouldn’t give any more specifics.
At least two people will be in the car at all times – a back-up driver, a technician and sometimes a volunteer commuter – in case something goes wrong.
But the cars will be driving themselves in real-world conditions, with two on the road together during test times.
There are safety concerns after a 49-year-old mother-of-two died last year in Arizona when she was hit by a self-driving Uber Volvo at 38mph after it didn’t attempt to brake.
Fiveai has now started two months of regular trials with human passengers to test how the cars react in real traffic situations.
They will have trained drivers inside in case something goes wrong, but the cars are scheduled to drive themselves in the boroughs of Croydon and Bromley.
A total of 130 volunteer commuters will take part in the ongoing project, which will see the cars – adapted versions of Ford Mondeos – face reallife problems.
The cars began initial trials in April and Fiveai is now rolling out a bigger testing programme on London’s roads.
This is the first time the cars will have commuters – believed to be employees of the Direct Line insurance company – inside them.
Streetwise, the project behind the car trials, is using more than £12million in government funding to test its technology, The Telegraph reported.
The cars will drive on a set circuit 11.8miles (19km) long and will pick up and drop off their passengers at unknown set locations – no details of the route have been revealed.
Research earlier this year found drivers in London travel at an average speed of 7mph, so it could take the cars around 1hr 41mins to complete the loop.
The roads they’re being tested on have a maximum speed of 30mph.
Grant Shapps MP, the Secretary of State for Transport, said: ‘The untapped potential of self-driving vehicle technology is huge.
‘It could enhance road safety, tackle isolation, and create economic opportunities.
‘Streetwise’s successful trial will be a major step to rolling out the next phase of the UK’S transport revolution.’
The trials will allow Fiveai’s technology to ‘learn’ routes around the area and to get used to reacting to its sensors in real-world situations.