£3.2 million for autonomous shuttle services in Cambridge

Smart Cambridge, led by Cambridgeshire County Council, has been awarded £3.2 million of government funding to develop autonomous shuttle service as part of its public transport network.

Alongside the Greater Cambridge Partnership, Smart Cambridge will use the Innovate UK funding to build and trial six 10-15-seater self-driving shuttles to operate on the southern section of the existing guided busway, initially for an out-of-hours service, when ordinary buses aren’t running.

Developed by Coventry-based engineering firm Aurrigo, which ran a trial with an autonomous four-seater ‘pod’ in Cambridge last year, the trial will pave the way for an autonomous shuttle service that will run in the early mornings, late evenings and during the weekends, filling the current void for shift workers, revellers and weekend shoppers.

Francis Burkitt, chair of the Greater Cambridge Partnership, said: “One of the GCP’s core missions is to develop and bring cutting-edge transport technology to Greater Cambridge, within the scope of the Mayor and Combined Authority’s overall transport strategy and vision, so our region can lead the way in creating a set of 21st Century public transport options for our residents to use, and to help our businesses grow.

“Mid-sized self-driving shuttles running over relatively short distances could be a key part of that, especially as they could whizz back and forwards in the early mornings, late evenings, throughout the night and at weekends, when other forms of public transport are less active. Aurrigo will now design and manufacture a larger version of its four passenger self driving pods to suit the location and customer needs, with the ‘autonomous shuttles’ able to accommodate wheelchairs, mobility scooters and bicycles.”