DRIVERLESS Knight Rider-style buses are set to hit UK roads in days as thousands brace for the terrifying new concept.
The self-driving motors will soon be zooming along the streets of Central Milton Keynes.
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Photographs of the StreetCAV, a ‘plug-and-play’ shuttle, show a pod-like vehicle with bars and handles like any normal bus.
Except it’s almost impossible to tell which end is the front, because there’s no space for a driver’s seat.
Instead, the entire pod has room for passengers, with seats along either side and a central door.
Before it is given the green light, the buses will be trialled in the city centre in December, MK Citizen reported.
If successful, the vehicles should be ready to board its first passengers in 2025.
The driverless shuttles are currently on display in the town’s Smart City Experience Centre.
Zenzic’s CAM Supply Chain UK programme was launched by the government to help bring the UK in the running for world-leader in development of self-driving vehicles.
It has pumped money into the ambitious project, which will be lead by the Smart City Consultancy (SMCCL).
“The StreetCAV project has been going for some time now so we are absolutely thrilled that it is finally at a stage where we can reveal it to the world,” Ian Pulford, CEO at SMCCL, said.
“Thanks to the partners we’ve been fortunate to involve in the project, we truly believe we have developed a solution which can change the future of urban mobility while making our towns and cities smarter, greener, and more inclusive.
“We have also worked rigorously to ensure public safety. Working closely with Milton Keynes City Council, BT and ECS, we will establish a city centre control room, connected by a specifically designed communications network, provided by CableFree, which will in-turn allow the Ohmio vehicles to be supervised and managed remotely.
“It really has been a fantastic project to work on and we can’t thank all of our partners and funders enough for their continued work and support.”
Mark Cracknell, program director at Zenzic, added: “We are proud to have supported the development of StreetCAV and to have worked with all of the partners involved in this pioneering project.
“Should the trial prove a success, it could lay the foundations for a more connected, inclusive, and resilient transportation network not only for Milton Keynes, but for towns and cities across the globe.
“It is a perfect example of how, by working more collaboratively and bringing together industry, academia and the public sector, the UK can lead the way in accelerating the self-driving revolution.”
The Sun Online has reached out to Milton Keynes Council for comment.
TICKET TO THE FUTURE
Milton Keynes isn’t the only town which could soon have driverless motors roaming around its streets.
In early 2023, The Sun Online reported how self-driving, zero-emission shuttles will be piloted in Sunderland after receiving £6m in government and industry funding.
The Sunderland Advanced Mobility Shuttle project added it would trial three self-driving Aurrigo Auto-Shuttles.
A safety driver will be on board the shuttles just in case.
These futuristic-looking vehicles will transport passengers on public roads between Sunderland Interchange, Sunderland Royal Hospital and the University of Sunderland City Campus.
The initiative is led by Sunderland City Council in partnership with Aurrigo, Stagecoach, Angoka Ltf, Newcastle University and Bai Communications.
The project has received a £3m government grant matched by industry pros – which totals £6m.
Liz St Louis, director of Smart Cities at Sunderland City Council, said to Chronicle Live: “Leveraging the power of 5G technology and Sunderland’s leading smart city infrastructure.
“The focus of our ambitious project partners is underpinned by an ethos of leaving no one and nowhere behind.
“Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs) will provide huge social, industrial and economic benefits across the world and we’re hugely optimistic about a technology-fuelled future, powered by local expertise, right here in Sunderland.”
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