With Self-Driving Vans, Hamburg Tries to Make Microtransit Work
The traffic-clogged German city is launching a mobility service with autonomous minibuses that can be summoned via an app. Will it succeed where others have failed?
A rendering showing how a proposed hub for self-driving vans could integrate with a metro system. The city of Hamburg is set to launch a three-year pilot for such a shuttle program.
Source: xoio GmbH
Hamburg ranks as the most congested city in Germany, but it’s working hard to lose that title. By 2030, the city wants 80% of all journeys to be made by public transportation, bicycle or on foot, with every resident able to reach a bus or train within five minutes. To hit that target, the city’s transit operator is rolling out improvements that go beyond the existing bus and rail network: self-driving shuttles.
Next year, the German port city plans to launch a fleet of up to 20 autonomous electric minibuses that initially will offer free on-demand rides across up to 50 square kilometers (about 20 square miles). The pilot phase of the program, dubbed ALIKE, is set to run to 2026, but the larger vision is to expand the fleet to as many as 10,000 vehicles by 2030 to fill in current transit gaps and help the city achieve its emissions goals. Ultimately, the idea is to make public transportation so effortless and accessible that private vehicles get left behind.