Gyeonggi-do Autonomous Cooperative Driving Bus, Trial Operation in June... First Public Introduction in September

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] The autonomous cooperative driving bus promoted by Gyeonggi Province will begin test operations next month in Seongnam Pangyo Techno Valley. Based on the test operation results, the province plans to operate autonomous cooperative driving buses on general roads in Pangyo Techno Valley as early as September. If this happens, it is expected to be the first case in Korea where autonomous buses operate alongside regular vehicles.

On the 17th, the province announced that it successfully completed the autonomous cooperative driving bus driving test at the K-City autonomous driving test site of the Korea Automobile Testing & Research Institute located in Hwaseong on the 9th, and passed the temporary operation permit review.

Accordingly, the province will obtain a temporary autonomous driving operation license from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport by the end of this month and start test operations from June.

An autonomous vehicle is a car capable of self-driving without driver or passenger operation through self-recognition, judgment, and control. Autonomous cooperative driving buses differ from general autonomous vehicles in that they receive infrastructure information such as signal information, pedestrian status at crosswalks, and traffic conditions from a control center. Because the autonomous driving functions are supplemented by the control center, they have the advantages of higher efficiency and safety.

The Gyeonggi Province autonomous cooperative driving bus entering test operation in June is an improved version of a commercially available low-floor electric bus manufactured by Edison Motors, made capable of autonomous cooperative driving. It measures 10.99m in length, 2.49m in width, and 3.39m in height. It is a bus currently operating on general roads, but with only 20 seats instead of 48. Equipped with sensors such as radar and lidar and an autonomous driving system, the vehicle can drive itself. Traffic infrastructure information such as signal information, pedestrian status at crosswalks, and traffic conditions is provided by the Gyeonggi Autonomous Driving Center located in Pangyo.

During the test operation period, only administrators will be on board without passengers to control the operation status. The operation section will run back and forth over a 7km section between Pangyo 1st Techno Valley and 2nd Techno Valley to facilitate commuting for Pangyo workers. The bus is also equipped with a function to comply with the legal maximum speed (0~50 km/h) on the driving section.

Without driver intervention, the bus automatically adjusts its speed according to the driving situation of the vehicle ahead and can automatically steer the bus wheel to stay centered in the driving lane or prevent lane departure. If objects such as vehicles, pedestrians, or bicycles suddenly appear ahead, sensors recognize the objects and can safely stop in emergency collision situations. For safety assurance, if the driver intervenes by operating the accelerator or brake pedals, the system automatically stops.

The province will decide on matters related to general operation of the autonomous cooperative driving bus, such as fares and operation frequency, after the pilot operation.

A provincial official expressed expectations, saying, "Gyeonggi Province will play a leading role in solving traffic problems and industrial development through the mobility revolution led by autonomous driving."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.