Amid the issue of a shortage of bus drivers, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government has launched an initiative to make self-driving buses carrying passengers travel at the legal speed of 50 km/h.
This initiative is being promoted by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government to solve problems such as the shortage of drivers by utilizing autonomous driving technology, and will be held for a limited time from the 2nd to the 13th of this month.
After departing from the West Exit of Shinjuku Station, the self-driving bus is supposed to pass in front of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building 50 and the 18nd Main Office Building and return to the West Exit of Shinjuku Station, and will travel on the same route as a regular bus at the maximum legal speed of 2 km / h.
For safety reasons, the bus was limited to <> seats, and it was necessary to make a reservation in advance through the dedicated website, and passengers on the first flight on the morning of the <>nd filmed the automatic movement of the steering wheel on the monitor in the car.
A total of 10 buses are scheduled to run from 4 a.m. to 12 p.m. on weekdays, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government hopes to check whether smooth operation can be performed in areas with relatively heavy traffic and to consider future urban development by investigating the width required for dedicated lanes.
A woman in her 60s who took the bus said, "When I saw the steering wheel moving automatically, I felt that the future had come, and I hope that it will spread nationwide because I think it will lead to solutions to problems such as labor shortages."