What's Next for VW? Robo-taxis on the Roads
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What once seemed like pure science fiction will soon become reality: autonomous Uber vehicles will ferry passengers to their destination safely without any human intervention. This technology is being provided by Volkswagen. Those responsible for this vision are talking about an ambitious 10-year plan.
Autonomous cars have been tested on public roads for several years now. In cities such as San Francisco, robotaxis from Waymo, a Google and Alphabet subsidiary, and Cruise have been part of the street scene for some time, but they have not been incident-free. Nevertheless, development of this idea is progressing rapidly. Now, Uber also wants to actively participate in the future market of autonomous mobility.
Volkswagen and Uber forge a Partnership
Moia, a Volkswagen Group brand, recently announced that Volkswagen and Uber have entered into a strategic partnership. The aim is to integrate autonomous ID. Buzz models into the Uber platform. The ID. Buzz AD is not only a fully electric bus, but is also fully autonomous and will be used as a cab in the future.
The start of the pilot test drives is planned for the end of 2025 in Los Angeles. In the initial phase, trained safety drivers will be on board to be able to intervene in dangerous situations. Commercial operation is also planned from as early as 2026. "This collaboration is a milestone on the road to autonomous mobility and underlines the joint commitment of Volkswagen and Uber to the future of transportation," says Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber. In the long term, the partnership is expected to last at least ten years and increase the number of autonomous ID. Buzz AD vehicles to several thousand.
What is the Status of Autonomous Driving in Germany?
By the end of 2023, the ID. Buzz AD ferried its first batch of passengers on German soil, but only as part of the IAA. The ADAC praised the journey as safe, largely trouble-free, and surprisingly routine ride. Volkswagen already announced at the time that the sci-fi bus would be on German roads in Hamburg by 2026 at the latest.
It remains to be seen whether this plan will be implemented as planned. Although the ID. Buzz AD is said to have many features found in the highest autonomous driving level, whihc is level 5, it had not yet officially reached this level a year ago. At that point in time, Volkswagen explicitly referred to it as level 4.
