Joint Media Release by LTA and MOT: Autonomous vehicles to transform intra-town travel by 2022

MOT and LTA launch RFI for pilot deployment in Punggol, Tengah and JID

1.     Autonomous scheduled buses and autonomous on-demand shuttles will serve commuters in Punggol, Tengah and the Jurong Innovation District (JID) from 2022. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) will be piloting the deployment of autonomous vehicles in these districts to provide convenient first-last mile connectivity for residents, workers and students. This is part of continued Smart Nation efforts to develop Smart Urban Mobility solutions that leverage data and digital technologies to enhance the public transport commute.

2.     The autonomous scheduled services will complement human-driven public buses, and will initially travel on less crowded roads.  In addition to intra-town bus services, LTA is also exploring the use of autonomous buses for express transit links to connect the North-East Line to the North-South, East-West and Thomson East Coast Lines.  The autonomous on-demand services are to enhance first and last mile connectivity in and around Punggol, Tengah and JID. These will be particularly useful for the elderly, families with young children and the less mobile, who can hail the services via their mobile phones. On-demand shuttles can also be used to serve the Seletar Aerospace Park.

3.     Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister for Transport, Mr Khaw Boon Wan, said, “AV technology can greatly enhance the accessibility and connectivity of our public transport system, particularly for the elderly, families with young children, and the less mobile. Through the pilot deployment, we can gain insights into how we can design infrastructure, organize services and formulate regulations to better facilitate the safe use of AVs in Singapore”.

4.     The Ministry of Transport (MOT) and LTA today launched a Request for Information (RFI) to seek inputs from the industry and research institutions on the key requirements and enablers needed for the successful pilot deployment of AVs. To facilitate the preparations for the pilot deployment, RFI respondents are invited to submit inputs on various aspects such as concepts of operations (e.g. how the AV fleets can be optimally deployed), physical infrastructure requirements (e.g. space requirements for depots and other facilities) and system requirements (e.g. the fleet management system required).

5.     The pilot deployment is expected to provide important insights into how we can further scale up the deployment of AVs across Singapore, as well as develop new towns and refurbish existing ones to facilitate the mass deployment of AVs. Permanent Secretary for Transport and Chairman of the Committee on Autonomous Road Transport in Singapore (CARTS), Mr Loh Ngai Seng, said, “The pilot deployment will take us into the next phase of the roadmap set out by CARTS for the deployment of AVs in Singapore, when we begin to progressively deploy AVs as a form of public transport in our towns. Safety and accessibility will be our top priorities.”

6.     The RFI will close on 31 May 2018. A briefing to industry and research institutions will be held on 8 December 2017.