Commuters in Barcelona have recently been enjoying free rides on a new driverless minibus. Deployed by Renault, the trial aims to discover the future of urban mobility.
Two autonomous electric minibuses are operating on a 2.2-kilometer (1.36-mile) open road loop in the heart of Barcelona’s streets, in a collaboration between Renault and WeRide.
“By developing autonomous shuttles in a dense and complex urban environment, the experimentation demonstrates the maturity of new technologies for automated public transport services,” said Renault in a statement.
First automated mobility network
The company revealed that after an experiment from March 10 to April 19 in France’s Valence, the implementation of a commercial service of level 4 automated shuttles is targeted from July 2025.
The first automated mobility network with a high level of service in Valence, France, connects a TGV railway station to the numerous businesses within the surrounding 162-hectare business park.
The open road route of the two shuttles meets the concrete needs of users of the Valence TGV station, as well as the 150 companies and their 3,000 employees, by serving the station, the remote long-term car park, and the catering hub of the business park.
French private public transport operator beti and the insurer of the vehicles, Macif, are also involved in the testing.
Autonomous vehicle operations
Renault underlined that it unveiled its autonomous vehicle strategy in May 2024 and launched the service with WeRide. Its two autonomous miniBuses used to run during the Roland-Garros tennis international.
With 1,000 km covered and nearly 700 people transported, this first full-scale test demonstrated the maturity of the technology as well as the relevance of this passenger transport solution.
“The US is doing a lot of experimentation with autonomous vehicles, the same thing in China,” Patrick Vergelas, head of Renault’s autonomous mobility projects, told The Associated Press. “Until now we don’t have a lot in fact in Europe. And this is why we want to show that this works and prepare Europe to this route in public transportation.”
Equipped with 10 cameras, sensors
Reports revealed that the electric bus can run for 120 kilometers (74 miles) without a recharge and reach 40 kilometers per hour (25 mph). It is equipped with 10 cameras and eight lidars (sensor arrays) to help it navigate the streets filled with cars, motorbikes, and pedestrians. The company says the bus is able to drive safely on a given course through a busy downtown like that of bustling Barcelona.
Renault Group is working with WeRide to develop automated public transport solutions in Europe with an L4 autonomy level that can manage driving situations on its own, in a defined operational area, with remote supervision, but without an operator on board.
Whether in the heart of large cities, in suburban areas, or in constrained environments, autonomous miniBuses offer a tangible way to transform public mobility into a more accessible, more efficient, and more sustainable mobility.
