The world's first self-driving bus began operating in Scotland in May

The world's first fleet of self-driving public buses will go into operation in Scotland in May 2023 .

Stagecoach's self-driving public bus model. (Photo: Stagecoach)

Stagecoach 's self-driving buses will begin operating on a 22.5km stretch of road including the famous Forth Road suspension bridge in Edinburgh on May 15. A total of five single-deck buses will run regularly, carrying about 10,000 passengers per week. This is the result after a successful test run in January this year and financial support from the British government, Interesting Engineering reported on April 6.

According to Stagecoach, their self-driving buses will travel at a maximum speed of 80km/h on motorways and bus lanes while passing traffic lights and roundabouts. Although each vehicle does not require a driver, two employees remain on board full-time, one in the driver's seat to monitor the controls and one dedicated to assisting passengers.

This project is part of the British government's CAVForth initiative (connected automated vehicles) , initiated in 2019. The self-driving bus fleet was born after 4 years of research, planning and development. "We're excited to introduce the UK's first fleet of self-driving buses in the east of Scotland. The project marks a major milestone for public transport," said Carla Stockton-Jones, managing director of Stagecoach You, share.

In addition to the new self-driving public bus route, Stagecoach is also introducing a further 122 electric buses on key transport networks across England over the next 12 months. The operator recently introduced fully electric buses in cities such as Perth, Aberdeen, Inverness and Dunfermline in Scotland.