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Mobileye, Benteler EV Systems and Beep will launch the on-demand
driverless shuttles, which will feature 12 to 14 seats and no
steering wheel or pedal.
The vehicles will be operated in "contained geo-fenced areas"
where speed limits are 35 miles an hour or less, Hinrich
Woebcken, advisory board member for Beep, a mobility service
provider, said.
Mobileye plans to deploy robotaxis in Israel and Germany by the
end of this year pending regulatory approval. It is also working
with Silicon Valley startup Udelv to put automated electric
delivery vehicles into service in the United States by 2023.
Mobileye will prove to U.S. federal and state regulators that
its self-driving system would be safer than a human driver, said
Johann Jungwirth, vice president of Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS)
at Mobileye.
"On a technology perspective, we feel very, very bullish and
very strongly that the technology is actually close to being
ready," he said.
The executives said shuttles will help save on driver costs,
address driver shortages, as well as addressing urban problems
such as emissions and congestion.
"We see the interesting opportunities and growth of this
autonomous mover, autonomous shuttle market. So we see it as a
blue ocean," Marco Kollmeier, managing director of Benteler EV
Systems GmbH, said.
Benteler EV Systems, part of German automotive parts group
Benteler International AG, will build the shuttles that meet
automotive industry and safety standards for public road.
(Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin; Editing by Leslie Adler)
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