First autonomous public bus arrives in Singapore, will be piloted on bus services 400 and 191
Singapore has taken another step towards a driverless future, with the Land Transport Authority (LTA) announcing the arrival of its first autonomous public bus.
First autonomous public bus arrives in Singapore
In a Facebook post on 25 March, LTA revealed that the vehicle is the first of six autonomous buses that will be piloted on public routes.
These buses are slated to run on public bus service 400 in Marina Bay and 191 in the one-north area.
Source: Land Transport Authority on Facebook
LTA shared that these autonomous buses will operate alongside existing manned buses when they are ready for deployment.
It also emphasised that the buses will undergo “rigorous testing” before they are rolled out for public use.
This is to ensure they meet all necessary safety and operational requirements before hitting the roads.
Source: Land Transport Authority on Facebook
No timeline has been given for when the buses will officially begin service, but more updates will be shared in due course.
Some netizens excited, others worried about reliability
In the comments section, responses among netizens were mixed.
One saw the autonomous bus as an innovation and was delighted to see it.
Source: Facebook
A fellow commenter urged LTA to consider deploying autonomous buses for service 825, before adding that they found the new buses to be “cute”.
Source: Facebook
But not everyone was thrilled by the introduction of these buses.
One Facebook user was concerned about the capacity of the autonomous buses, mentioning that it’ll likely be uncomfortable during peak hours.
Source: Facebook
Another netizen hoped that the new autonomous buses are reliable and don’t break down easily.
Source: Facebook
First autonomous shuttle route in Punggol
Earlier this year, the first autonomous shuttle route in Punggol was also officially opened for community rides.
In a 4 March media release, LTA said that members of the public will be able to register online to ride on the new autonomous shuttle service.
These rides will be free for an initial period, before revenue services begin.
In a separate Facebook post on 28 Feb, LTA said these autonomous transport options will “make life simple”.
“They’ll give you improved connectivity and convenience, getting you from point to point faster so you can focus on more important things!”
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Featured image adapted from Land Transport Authority on Facebook.
