Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, shared a series of video clips of himself experiencing a ride in a self-driving vehicle on Thursday.
Sheikh Hamdan announced on Instagram stories that self-driving taxis will soon be available on Dubai roads. The video was captioned: “We are launching automated self-driving taxis soon on Dubai’s road.”
Inside the self-driving car with Sheikh Hamdan were Lt.Gen. Abdullah Khalifa Al Marri, Dubai Police commander-in-chief; Mattar Al Tayer, director general and chairman of the Board of Executive Directors of the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA); and a human driver from Cruise, who was only on standby and whose hands were off the steering wheel. Everyone was wearing seatbelts. The footage also showed Sheikh Hamdan in what would usually be the driver’s side, and other passengers in the vehicle, being shown how the car detected a nearby cyclist, as well as the need to slow down for a speed bump.
Also demonstrated was the vehicle detecting that it was approaching a school.
Sheikh Hamdan’s car was a Chevrolet Bolt, which was part of a fleet of “Meznah” vehicles. Other local names will be given to new fleets as and when they launch.
It makes Dubai the first city in the world outside the US to use the company’s self-driving vehicle.
Tests are being carried out in the Jumeirah area, ahead of a planned public launch early next year.
Mattar Al Tayer, director general and chairman of the board of executive directors of Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), said:
“The testing of Cruise AVs is a crucial step towards enhancing Dubai’s global leadership in implementing self-driving transport. It contributes to Dubai’s strategy for smart self-driving transport aimed at converting 25 per cent of all mobility journeys in the emirate to self-driving modes by 2030.
“The deployment of autonomous vehicles underscores the RTA’s keenness to collaborate with leading global entities to advance AV technologies.
“Autonomous vehicles will play a pivotal role in offering innovative solutions for transport challenges, curbing urban congestion, and elevating road safety.”
Dubai authorities have previously said the emirate aims to make 25 per cent of RTA trips autonomous by 2030.
