The north’s first ever self-driving shuttle bus is due to begin its pilot run in Belfast in March.
The nine-seater Harlander will operate in the Belfast Harbour Estate from the Titanic Quarter halt railway station through to the Catalyst innovation hub.
Northern Ireland’s first autonomous passenger vehicle is currently undergoing testing at HORIBA MIRA’s autonomous vehicle testing facility near Nuneaton in Warwickshire.
The plans for the inaugural roll-out will see a safety operator on board the vehicle, which will offer last mile connectivity from public transport networks to businesses, tourist attractions and education and leisure facilities in the Titanic Quarter.
The initial pilot will run from March to September will be free of charge for passengers.
Developed by Belfast Harbour in collaboration with eVersum, Oxa, Angoka, BT and HORIBA MIRA (formerly the Motor Industry Research Association), Harlander has been described as an initial step on the pathway to fully driverless transport systems.
Details of the breakthrough project were first revealed by The Irish News.
“We’re incredibly excited to have visited HORIBA MIRA’s connected and autonomous vehicle testing facility near Coventry to see the Harlander in action,” said Belfast Harbour’s digital transformation director, Mike Dawson.
“We’re looking forward to people getting the chance to experience the service for themselves in the coming months as we start the pilot on the harbour estate.”
The initiative has been backed with £11 million in funding from government and private industry.
It includes a £5.5m funding package from Innovate UK, which is working with the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles to invest £41.5m in innovation projects geared at demonstrating the real world benefits of connected and autonomous vehicles.
