Self-driving bus service to start at facility near Haneda Airport

A Level 4 autonomous driving bus to be operated by Kajima Corp. and other companies travels in Ota Ward, Tokyo. - Photo: The Yomiuri Shimbun

TOKYO: Major construction company Kajima Corp. has announced that it will begin in August operating passenger service with a bus capable of Level 4 autonomous driving, meaning that under certain conditions it does not require a human to be involved in controlling it.

The bus, which will run within a business complex near Haneda Airport, will be operated by Kajima in cooperation with other companies such as SoftBank subsidiary Boldly Inc.

The bus will travel at speeds of up to 12 kph along an 800-meter loop of road at the Haneda Innovation City complex in Ota Ward, Tokyo.

For the time being, a staff member will be aboard the bus, which can carry 11 passengers, and may switch to manual operation in some situations.

The bus’s operations will be monitored from a base in Ibaraki Prefecture.

As bus companies are now facing a serious and worsening shortage of drivers across the nation, hopes are high that know-how gained from this initiative will be utilised in the future.

Kajima and Boldly have said they also intend to establish service on a route connecting the complex to Haneda Airport. - The Japan News/ANN