Self-driving cars get into gear on roads in Manchester
£5m TRIAL INCLUDES VEHICLES RUNNING TO AIRPORT FROM TRAIN STATION (WITH A DRIVER, JUST IN CASE)
SELF-DRIVING electric cars are to be tested on the region’s roads in a trial which will see passengers ferried across Manchester Airport in futuristic pods.
The robot cars, which use technology and sensors to run without a driver, are to be tested on both the airport site and along roads including the new Airport Relief Road.
Dubbed ‘Project Synergy,’ the trial has two parts. ■Three autonomous cars known as Pods on Demand (PODs) with no steering wheel or controls to ferry passengers across Manchester Airport ■Three converted sports cars which travel in ‘convoy’ along the airport relief road from Stockport railway station.
The vehicles to take part in the £5m pilot - funded through a government innovation grant - are currently being manufactured by Westfield Technology Group, which has now opened an office in Manchester.
Transport for Greater Manchester and the airport, are partners in the project. The Westfield Pod on Demand is a four-to-six seater vehicle with no steering wheel or pedals. There will be a steward on board who can stop or slow the vehicle down but not control it entirely.
It will run from the airport station to Terminal Two.
Westfield told the M.E.N. that the PODs would be tested by the public, with disability groups invited initially to try them out and consider whether they improve their access to the airport.
Passengers who trial them will be able to try out ‘in-vehicle check-in’ before they get to the terminal.
The three converted sports cars will run from Stockport railway station, down the A6, on to the 10km bypass which links to the M56 via the A555, where they will travel in ‘platoon’ or ‘convoy’ to the airport.
They will always have a driver in it to monitor the trial and take over the controls if necessary.
This trial will not include passengers from the public and will be purely for research purposes.
The sports cars will run in ‘convoy’ with the goal of saving energy by reducing drag and taking up less road space to look at future ways of improving congestion.
Also being tested as part of the trials will be a ‘virtual concierge’ - an interactive voice for partially sighted users, as well as a communication system between the sports cars and the TfGM control centre to report back on congestion or roadworks information.
Julian Turner, CEO of Westfield Technology Group: “We’re really excited to be trialling in Greater Manchester.”
A Manchester Airport spokesman said: “We’re looking forward to working with TFGM and their partners on Project Synergy as the trials develop.
“We are always looking at innovative ways to help people move around our site and also get to and from the airport as part of our sustainable development plan.”