Nahariya will be the first city with an autonomous bus line

Nahariya will be the first city in Israel to operate autonomous buses without drivers on a regular urban line. The Transport Ministry and Road Safety has approved the Israeli company Imagery to conduct a first-of-its-kind trial in the country of an autonomous bus on a public road. This is part of a joint project between the Transport Ministry and the Innovation Authority, through the company Natib Express, which operates public transportation lines in northern Israel.

The trial, conducted by the Ayalon Routes Company, has begun on the number 5 line of Natib Express in Nahariya. This route spans approximately eight kilometers, starting and ending at the Nahariya Mall station. The line runs through a central area of the city with many roundabouts, pedestrians, and vehicles traveling within the city.

The autonomous bus can accommodate up to 32 passengers and includes an electric ramp for boarding passengers with wheelchairs. The trial will involve driving experiences in various road conditions, visibility, and weather conditions, as well as handling unexpected events on the road. The electric bus can travel up to 200 kilometers on a single charge.

The professional committee for approving trials on public roads of the Transport Ministry has approved the start of the trial, initially with the presence of a supervising safety driver, who will ensure the proper functioning of the autonomous system, and also without passengers. In a more advanced stage of the trial, the company will be allowed to operate the line in full autonomous mode, with passengers and without a supervising driver.

Public transportation is a preferred target for autonomous transportation developers because it operates on fixed routes in a defined geographical area and suffers from a constant shortage of drivers. While many companies in Israel and around the world are engaged in developing private autonomous vehicles, the first autonomous vehicles approved for road use were actually taxis ("robotaxis") that have been operating in several cities in the U.S. and China in recent years. The next step will likely be autonomous buses that travel on fixed and sometimes exclusive routes.