The other day I saw in downtown Vegas a driverless autonomous AAA van that claimed it was free to jump in and tell it where to drive you to. What's the story on this free ride?
It’s a pilot program between the City of Las Vegas and two tech companies that we learned about through VitalVegas blogger Scott Roeben, AAA having been of no assistance, roadside or otherwise.
This is actually the second coming of the van, which plied Vegas streets back in early 2017. The stubby little bus (capacity 15 passengers) debuted in Sion, Switzerland, two years ago and Las Vegas is its guinea-pig market for America, where it's the first such driverless public conveyance to hit the roads. (A similar trial run was conducted in London.) Hop aboard and tell the attendant — a sort of mobile concierge — where you want to get off.
How did Las Vegas get tapped to be the first place in the U.S. to feature this innovative vehicle? “We’re a leader in sustainability and innovation,” says City of Las Vegas Public Information Officer Jace Radke, “so it’s a natural fit.” Remarked Mayor Carolyn Goodman, one of the first passengers, “Being the control freak that I am, I was very nervous to get on this vehicle, but it's clean, has beautiful air, and moves sort of swiftly but so beautifully down Fremont East.”
The January 2017 tryout hewed to a route between the Container Park and Flippin’ Good Burgers & Shakes, but the formal launch of the 12-month followup program will take place on Nov. 8 at 10 a.m., in front of the Container Park.
“It’s basically going to cruise around Fremont East, down Carson [Street], and back around. We’re still working on that [route],” Radke said of the 2017-18 incarnation. This will be the first time the microbus interacts with normal traffic, its stint of a year ago having taken place on a closed course. Battery-powered, it can max out at 28 miles per hour, but normally maintains a sedate 15 mph. Stereoscopic sensors on the ends of the bus enable it to stop for traffic signals and crosswalks, even jaywalkers.
“One would hope the courtship between Navya [maker of the vehicle] and the City of Las Vegas will flourish to the point where driverless shuttles could zig-zag throughout downtown,” writes Roeben, “perhaps even extending their reach to the Strip. This, of course, involves a significant investment in infrastructure, so it’ll never happen.”
We’re not so pessimistic. Where there’s demand in Las Vegas, supply usually follows.
But! Not so fast. We wrote all the above before the van had a little fender-bender with a delivery truck on its first day of operation, November 9. Ironically, the driverless van sensed the danger and immediately stopped, but the delivery driver, as he was backing up, seemed not to see the van, grazing its front fender. None of the shuttle's eight passengers were injured; the driver was cited.
The shuttle was pulled from service, but the pilot project was, at the time of this writing, expected to continue.
