Dutch airport Schiphol is trialling the use of airside self-driving buses in tests due to continue to the end of April.
More sustainable ground operation
The bus trial is part of the Amsterdam airport’s ambition to create “a more sustainable and emission-free ground operation,” Jan Zekveld, the Head of innovation at the Royal Schiphol Group said in a press release. By 2050, the group says, it intends to replace all vehicles with “a contiguous fleet of autonomous, zero-emission vehicles”.
The two electric autonomous buses being tested follow a fixed route every day, making various airside stops close to the premises of a number of cleaning firms and ground handling companies, whose employees are using the buses as a shuttle service.
Each bus has capacity to transport just eight people at a time, who must all be seated. Referencing their dinky size, Ohmio, the Auckland, New Zealand company behind the buses has said, “Cool things come in cute packages”.
Passengers board the bus from an employee corridor that connects to airside services. They can get on and off the bus at any location along the five-minute route.
89% rate the buses positive and safe
Employee feedback is being gathered, with the airport particularly interested in user sentiment around the driverless vehicles and the potential advantages of it. It is clear the airport group is at pains to allay employee fears about automation taking over human jobs. “Even in an autonomous ground operation”, the airport group insisted, “the employee will still have an important role to play.”
Initial figures show that 89% of employees would be willing to use the buses again, with the journey rated as safe and positive. The airport will continue testing the technology and assessing the possibility of expansion until the end of April.
Designed to consider traffic, signage, and roadusers
Ohmio, develops self-driving vehicles that can interact with traffic signs and other autonomous transport. As what is known as “Automated Guided Vehicles”, the buses are equipped with cameras to monitor the surroundings and their programming is designed to ensure they consider other road users, their position on the road and when they should stop or give way to traffic.
If successful, it is likely the buses or similar will be rolled out at other airports operated by the Royal Schiphol Group, or at those where it is a stakeholder. These could include Rotterdam The Hague Airport (RTM) and Lelystad Airport (LEY) and Maastricht Aachen Airport (MST).
