Autonomous shuttles to operate a 7km route in Solihull

Solihull Council have announced the latest phase of their SCALE project, which will see three autonomous buses working along a 7km route connecting Birmingham International rail station, the NEC and Birmingham Business Park.

The Solihull & Coventry Automated Links Evolution (SCALE) project is a collaborative initiative, aimed at better understanding the role self-driving vehicles might one day play within future transport systems. It is funded by the Department for Transport’s Centre for Connected Autonomous Vehicles.

In 2021, the council became the first Local Authority in the country to purchase its own fully electric autonomous shuttle and initially trialed it within the NEC environment, where the eight seat bus travelled along a one mile route.

The expanded trial will build upon the previous and will specifically look at the commercial viability of autonomous operations, passenger experience and operational factors such as insurance and vehicle maintenance.

The new buses, built by New Zealand based autonomous vehicle manufacturer Ohmio can carry up to 20 passengers. As per current legislation, all the buses will carry a human operator onboard who can take over control of the bus if needed.

The journeys will also be tracked in real time from A Transport for West Midlands’ control centre will track all the journeys in real time.

The project is being delivered by a consortium led by Solihull Council, including both the University of Warwick and Coventry University, TfWM, the NEC, Coventry City Council, Direct Line Group and automated vehicle simulation specialists IPG and dRISK.

The first section of the route is expected to go live before the of the year, with pilot scheduled to run until the end of March next year.

Cllr Andy Mackiewicz, Cabinet Member for Climate Change & Planning, said: ‘Connected Automated Mobility (CAM) technology has the potential to revolutionise the way we get around. We are excited to be leading the way, not just in Solihull, but regionally and across the country, in providing learning on CAM deployments in different settings and scenarios.’

‘We’ve already carried out a series of successful pathfinder trials here in Solihull, and shown how it is possible to practically and safely start incorporating self-driving vehicles into key parts of our transport infrastructure. SCALE represents the next step in this learning and will help develop our understanding around how future commercial passenger services might operate. We’ve brought together a fantastic consortium of experts for this pilot and are already benefitting from the ability to share our relevant expertise and experience in the rapidly evolving CAM sector.

‘Taking place across one of the best-connected destinations in the UK and Europe, this new Solihull-based route will join up three key assets within the UK Central Hub area, operating in a busy but controlled environment and gaining further real-world operating experience.’

Dean Zabrieszach, Ohmio Global CEO, said: ‘This is a really exciting opportunity for Ohmio as we grow our business in the UK and Europe. We have been involved in numerous trial deployments across the world; however, in the SCALE project, it is evident that our consortium members are eager to progress towards a full-scale transportation service.

‘Autonomous electric shuttles like the Ohmio Lift have the capacity to fill a void in current transportation systems by providing first mile and last mile accessibility for our communities.

‘We look forward to working with our partners in delivering a first-class project and look forward to continued opportunities in the UK, where the government is taking a leading role in supporting such projects, and in Europe.”

Mark Cracknell, Programme Director at Zenzic, a body established by government and industry to champion UK Connected and Automated Mobility, said: ‘This is a significant development for SCALE, one of the six successful projects from the CCAV Deployment competition, which form the most advanced set of commercial, self-driving passenger and freight operations anywhere in the world. With these investments, the UK is further strengthened and positioned to become one of the world’s leading destinations for the adoption of CAM technology and the delivery of improved transport services.’