Pony.ai has announced that it has obtained the first-ever self-driving passenger taxi permit in Guangzhou, China. This will allow the company to run a self-driving ride hailing service that supports remote assistance and omits a safety driver inside the vehicle. The permit was approved on April 21 and allows the company to immediately start a driverless travel service (Robotaxi) in the city. this comes one year after it got a similar license in Beijing.
The new service will allow commuters in Guangzhou to enjoy fully unmanned autonomous driving service when they place a request through the PonyPilot+ app. The new permit is coming after Pony.ai obtained the first remote test permit in the city in June 2021. It obtained another permit after the opening of the Guangzhou long-distance passenger transport policy.
The new permit will see Pony.ai fully autonomous Robotaxis traversing an area of 803 square kilometers in the Nansha District of the city.
According to Pony.ai, commuters in Guangzhou can use the PonyPilot+ to call a real self-driving vehicle and go to high-speed rail stations, subway entrances, residential areas, and several other destinations. The passenger can request for remote assistance during the trip and real-time communication will be activated. Pony.ai hopes to subsequently launch an online fully unmanned reservation system.
Pony.ai is also making inroads with its self-driving technology in other cities in China including the capital, Beijing. In March, the company obtained a demonstration application license for full vehicle unmanned operations in Beijing’s autonomous driving demonstration zone. Pony.ai was also allowed to open a fully unmanned vehicle in Yizhuang, Beijing.
The new Robotaxi models are equipped with Pony.ai’s sixth-generation self-driving software and hardware system. The Robotaxis have obtained test licenses in Beijing and Guangzhou. They have also passed expert reviews of the test without a safety driver inside the car in Beijing.
The Pony.ai’s self-driving Robotaxis are based on the Toyota Senna Autono-Maas (S-AM) with up to 200km of mileage during road testing. The company continues to chalk up the numbers in terms of its successes with autonomous driving. It has achieved over 21 million kilometers of autonomous driving and more than 1 million kilometers of unmanned testing. Pony.ai has also received about 200,000 paid travel orders. The company expects to extend the travel service to other parts of Guangzhou, Beijing, and other cities in China.
Pony.ai expands its Robotaxi services in China with Guangzhou rollout
RELATED:
- Upcoming BYD Electric Pickup Truck Caught on Camera in Spy Shots
- Tesla Finds a Way to Make Affordable Electric Vehicles
- BYD Targets 3 Million Electric Vehicle Sales in 2023 with Multi-Brand Strategy
- Xiaomi 13 Ultra vs Vivo X90 Pro+: Specs Comparison
- XPeng Unveils SEPA 2.0 EV Platform to Increase Efficiency and Reduce Costs
Comments