Singapores self-driving buses to get their own routes in 2018

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By Matthew Griffin Future Transport 27th October 2016

Singapore is quickly becoming the driverless vehicle test bed capital of the world

Hot on the heels of their recent announcement to become the first country in the world to authorise the use of self-driving taxis on their streets Singapore has announced that it will begin trials of two self-driving buses in its public fleet in 2018. The vehicles will be operating near the university which helped to bring them to life, Nanyang Technological University (NTU).

It’s notable that the buses are just that – fully fledged buses without compromise and they’ll be able to carry 80 people each, with a planned route between NTU and CleanTech Park in the Jurong Innovation District. Launching the buses could significantly improve traffic congestion during peak hours in the area and, as electric hybrids, the buses will charge for 30 seconds at every stop they make.

The route the buses will take near NTU

“Current efforts worldwide have been focused on cars,” said Professor Lam Khin Yong, NTU Chief of Staff and Vice-President of Research, “so this autonomous bus trial is the first of its kind in Singapore that will aim to improve road safety, reduce vehicle congestion, alleviate pollution and address manpower challenges.”

The buses will be managed by both NTU and the Land Transit Authority (LTA), the public transit regulatory commission for the world’s only island city-state and during peak hours, the buses will be deployed in various locations around the city.

“During off-peak hours the buses will be deployed dynamically based on commuter demand and the fastest possible route, thereby reducing the number of vehicles needed to ply the town and maximizing the number of commuters on board each vehicle,” said Khin Yong.

While they’re unsure just what buses will be used for the test the team want to keep the buses as close to the current fleet as possible so, according to Professor Subodh Mhaisalkar, an exexcutive director at NTU, if the test proves that the busses are viable then the fleet can be scaled up quickly, and with minimal effort or cost.

Matthew Griffin / About Author

Matthew Griffin, described as a "Walking encyclopaedia of the future" by NASA and a futurist polymath, is one of the world's most renowned futurists and strategic foresight experts. A serial entrepreneur Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working across the next 50 years, XPotential University, the world's first free futures and foresight university, and the World Futures Forum which works with the United Nations to solve the worlds greatest challenges. 13 times author of the Codex of the Future series, Matthew is an in demand international keynote, acclaimed university lecturer, and host of the hit Fanatical Futurist podcast.

A rare talent in his past Matthew helped build and run several multi-billion dollar business units for Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, and his ability to identify, track, and explain the impacts of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends on global business, culture, and society has earned him a powerful reputation and a roster of clients that include royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77+ governments, and many of the world's most respected brands including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi Group, Coca Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Disney, EY, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Pepsi Co, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, and many others. He was also the only futurist invited to talk at the UN COP28 held in Dubai alongside world leaders.

Regularly featured in the global media including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Khaleej Times, Telegraph, TIME, ViacomCBS, WIRED, and the WSJ, Matthews mission is to help organisations create a fair and sustainable future whose benefits are shared by everyone irrespective of their ability, background, or circumstances.