Capital of Innovation: Vilnius Puts Pedal to the Metal with Pioneering Autonomous Bus Venture

“The testing revealed certain difficulties related to the section of the route from Užupis Gymnasium to Užupis Angel. Intense traffic, improper parking and violations of the KET by drivers made it difficult to drive smoothly autonomously on this part of the route. We also faced a vandal attack in which an autonomous bus was defaced with graffiti. In this matter, we cooperate with public order and police officers in order to solve the problems” – Elon Šaparnis, head of the Autonomous Bus Testing Project, shares about the challenges.

Based on the results of the first weeks of testing and in order to improve the process, route corrections were made. The difficult section from the Užupis Gymnasium to the Užupis Angel was abandoned in order to cover a larger part of the route in autonomous mode, without operator intervention. After the changes, journeys will last up to 30 minutes, which will increase passenger flows. Rides will take place at the scheduled times: 7:00, 7:30, 8:00, 9:00, 9:30, 15:00, 15:30, 16:00, 17:00, 17:30. Updated schedules can be found on www.judu.lt and stops.lt pages.

Despite the challenges, the test attracted a lot of interest from passengers – the number of people who wanted to ride an autonomous bus exceeded the capacity. Passengers were interested in the operation of the bus and the goals of the whole project, and the security operator was happy to answer questions.

During the first two weeks of the test, 246 passengers used this innovative transport, and 57 of them participated in the survey, in which the bus was rated as high as 4.1 points out of 5. Passengers especially appreciated the new route and the city’s efforts to introduce innovations in the public transport system. Among the observations made by passengers, more sudden braking was mentioned, which, according to experts, is due to the need to ensure maximum safety.

“Testing of the autonomous bus in Vilnius attracted the attention of international experts – this project is particularly significant because the tests are carried out on real city streets, with real passengers. Similar testing of an autonomous bus in other European cities failed due to various challenges, therefore the test in Vilnius is considered an important step for the development of autonomous public transport on an international scale,” adds the JUDU expert.

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