Automotive and transportation markets are busy with many ongoing autonomous pilots. The promise of these pilots is showing that self-driven vehicles will have an important role in future transportation eco-system. Autonomous vehicles are slowly making their way into public transportation in the form of self-driven vehicles. Full integration of these autonomous vehicles into the existing public transportation network is closer than we think. The truth is public transport dominates driverless vehicle technology today: more than 25 percent of all urban rail in Asia has no drivers. Hundreds of millions of people now use driverless trains every day – so how can public transport be behind when it’s the only practical application of the technology today? These mini-buses will extend the reach of public transportation for the first or last mile of a longer trip. They will also help to increase public transportation coverage in many new areas without public transportation today. There will be many positive impacts on:

• Transportation efficiency by shifting travelers from using private cars to public transportation. This will also help to optimize the street space in highly dense city areas
• Driverless cars are not in practical use for daily travel in cities anywhere on earth yet. But it’s claimed they will take over travel in cities. Some also state public transport will lose out as a result since it’s not using advanced technology
• Road safety by providing safer and more reliable transportation service
• Healthier environment because the electricity will power autonomous mini-buses which will decrease CO2 emission
• Integration of walking and biking into the transportation ecosystem

Main benefits for society will be more convenient public transportation and lower operational cost. Citizens will greatly benefit because mobility services will gain better coverage in urban and rural areas. This should motivate governments to create policies which would shape a new generation of urban planning and design. However, there are still many challenges which need to be solved by manufacturers, technology companies, and operators. Many players in the transportation ecosystem have already recognized it, which resulted in quite a few autonomous pilots happening around the globe. These initiatives are bringing the latest technical innovations in autonomous technology into our daily lives. Most importantly, these pilots are also preparing governments for the reality of autonomous vehicles in public transportation.