Self-driving shuttle route goes live
Wednesday 7 May 2025
Self-driving shuttle route goes live
WMG at The University of Warwick is part of a pioneering project, led by Solihull Council, to develop a self-driving fully-electric shuttle service at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), Birmingham.
A new autonomous vehicle trial is now underway, and visitors to the NEC can now take advantage of a pioneering self-driving shuttle service which will be in operation during busy events.
The Solihull & Coventry Automated Links Evolution (SCALE) project is a collaborative initiative, aimed at better understanding the role self-driving vehicles might one day play within our future transport system.
By the summer, the route will be extended in further phases to see the fleet of three electric self-driving shuttles carry passengers along a 7km route linking passengers from Birmingham International rail station to the NEC and Birmingham Business Park.
The pioneering project is being delivered by a consortium led by Solihull Council, including WMG and Coventry University, Transport for West Midlands (TfWM)Link opens in a new window, the NEC, Coventry City Council and automated vehicle simulation specialists IPG and dRISK.
The accessible fully electric shuttles being used have been built by New Zealand based autonomous vehicle manufacturer Ohmio, represented in the UK by Ohmio UK, and can carry up to 14 passengers. They use a sophisticated suite of cameras and sensors to understand their surroundings, allowing them to interact with live traffic and move around safely. In line with current legislation, the shuttles will have a human operator onboard, who will have the ability to take control if required. Each journey will also be tracked in real time from TfWM’s control centre.
Find out more about the WMG’s research in CCAS here: Connected and Cooperative Autonomous Systems | WMGLink opens in a new window