U-M’s North Campus is now home to the first driverless shuttle project in the U.S. focusing on user behavior research.| Medium Read

Enlarge IMAGE: The shuttle operates from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and transports passengers from distant parking at the North Campus Research Complex. Photo by Levi Hutmacher.

The Mcity Driverless Shuttle, a research project at the University of Michigan, launched today on U-M’s North Campus. In the project, Mcity is studying how passengers react to the driverless shuttles as a way to gauge consumer acceptance of the technology. The shuttles are equipped with on-board cameras and Wi-Fi communications to capture data generated during operation. Mcity is a U-M-led public-private partnership to accelerate advanced mobility vehicles and technologies. It is operating the shuttle in partnership with U-M Logistics, Transportation and Parking.

MCITY'S DRIVERLESS SHUTTLE 1000 Shuttle test runs conducted 500 Hours of testing 200 Hours of conductor training

“The Mcity Driverless Shuttle is the first driverless shuttle project in the United States focusing on user behavior research and data collection, and we’re excited to begin this important work,” said Mcity Director Huei Peng, who is also the Roger L. McCarthy Professor of Mechanical Engineering and the faculty lead on the shuttle research project. “The data we collect will help researchers understand user trust over time, as well as how to design safer vehicles and how to operate them more efficiently.” The Mcity Driverless Shuttle uses two fully-automated, 11-passenger, all-electric AUTONOM Shuttles manufactured by French firm NAVYA to cover a roughly one-mile round-trip route contained to the North Campus Research Complex (NCRC). The shuttle carries students, faculty and staff to the complex from more distant parking and provides easy access to the U-M/Ann Arbor Area Transportation Authority bus stop at Hubbard and Hayward streets. Future plans include route expansion and accessibility research.

Enlarge IMAGE: Passengers take a ride on the Mcity Driverless Shuttle within the North Campus Research Complex. Photo: Roger Hart

The shuttles are equipped with lidar, which uses invisible laser beams to build a view of the surrounding environment, and GPS for localization. Interior cameras record the reactions of riders inside the shuttle. This includes the use of video and audio recordings, and photographs from the videos. Exterior cameras will capture the reaction and behavior of other road users, including other vehicles, bicyclists and pedestrians. Mcity will use Wi-Fi data, already gathered by the university, to learn about ridership and usage patterns, and is working with J.D. Power to survey users about their experience. Mcity’s data protection plan will safeguard riders’ privacy. “The research obtained from our surveys will help the industry understand the rider’s experience on the driverless shuttle as well as non-riders who interact with the shuttle as it operates on U-M’s campus,” said Kristin Kolodge, executive director, driver interaction and human machine interface, for J.D. Power. “Examining the experience from both perspectives will help industry stakeholders better understand consumer acceptance of driverless technology over time.” The research obtained from our surveys will help the industry understand the rider’s experience on the driverless shuttle as well as non-riders who interact with the shuttle as it operates on U-M’s campus.

While the shuttles will run autonomously, a conductor will be on board at all times, with the ability to immediately stop if necessary for safety reasons. Mcity’s team of safety conductors completed comprehensive training on the shuttle, both inside the Mcity Test Facility and on the route at NCRC. About 1,000 test runs were conducted inside the test facility. In total, approximately 500 hours of testing and training were completed, including 200 hours of training by the conductors. “Safety is Mcity’s highest priority,” Peng said.