The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) in Dubai and Cruise, a self-driving technology company, have started supervised testing of Chevrolet Bolt-based autonomous vehicles in the Jumeirah 1 area.
RTA has a partnership agreement with Cruise to operate autonomous vehicles to offer taxi and e-hailing services in Dubai in the future.
Autonomous taxis, however, are still in the trial phase meaning no passengers are allowed and a safety driver is still present behind the wheel.
The latest testing of the Cruise autonomous technology is the result of joint efforts of RTA and Cruise following successful data collection efforts and testing on closed test tracks.
All these efforts are in line with achieving the Vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to convert 25 percent of the trips to be autonomous by 2030.
Such an undertaking, necessitating investment in smart mobility and the application of sophisticated technologies aligns with RTA’s commitment to bolster the wellbeing and safety of Dubai’s residents, tourists, and visitors.
Khaled Al Awadhi, director of Transportation Systems, Public Transport Agency at RTA, had previously said the autonomous taxi — operated by US-based self-driving technology company Cruise, a subsidiary of General Motors (GM) — will take no human passengers during the trial phase. But select individuals will be able to take Cruise taxis by the end of this year, before its full commercial operations by the second half of 2024.
Cruise will validate autonomous driving safety and performance of Cruise AVs in Dubai and the compatibility of the AV’s requirements on the digital and physical infrastructure for the target area of operation in Jumeirah 1.
The team will also work on the performance of the autonomous technology during the tests and demonstrations showing the maturity of the Cruise’s vehicles, especially during critical traffic situations in Dubai.
Cruise has been running driverless ride-hail service in the USA since February 2022. During a recent trip to San Francisco, RTA’s technical team took Cruise rides which confirmed RTA’s confidence in Cruise’s technology.
