HEAT trials autonomous shuttle in regular traffic in Hamburg

The HEAT (Hamburg Electric Autonomous Transportation) project is integrating an autonomous shuttle bus into regular traffic in the German city. The electric bus will be available to riders travelling in HafenCity, a district within the borough of Hamburg-Mitte, from mid-2020. Developed by IAV, the minibus should be able to reach speeds of 50km/h while travelling along the 1.8km route. A digital communications system and sensors have been installed along the route to keep the vehicle in communication
August 13, 2019 Read time: 2 mins

The HEAT (Hamburg Electric Autonomous Transportation) project is integrating an autonomous shuttle bus into regular traffic in the German city.

The electric bus will be available to riders travelling in HafenCity, a district within the borough of Hamburg-Mitte, from mid-2020.

Developed by IAV, the minibus should be able to reach speeds of 50km/h while travelling along the 1.8km route. A digital communications system and sensors have been installed along the route to keep the vehicle in communication with its surroundings and the Hamburger Hochbahn control centre.

Hamburger Hochbahn - a public transport operator - will continually monitor the progress of the bus and will be able to make driving commands depending on the traffic situation.

Initially, the bus will run along a defined route without passengers and accompanied by a vehicle attendant who can take control if necessary.

The bus can carry up to ten people. It has two benches with four seats each and a foldable bench with two more seats.

Other partners involved in the project include 120 Siemens Mobility, the Institute for Climate Protection, Energy and Mobility and the 2206 German Aerospace Center.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Truck platooning trials take to the highways
    July 24, 2017
    There is rising enthusiasm in America and beyond for the concept of truck platooning with trials being planned in several US states, as David Crawford reports. Growing numbers of US states are considering or implementing plans for trials of electronically-linked truck platooning on public road networks. This is in response to the interest being shown by the US$70bn a year road freight industry, where fuel represents 41% of the operating costs making the prospect of improving fuel economy by trucks travellin
    Read More
  • Integrate systems to reduce roadside infrastructure
    January 27, 2012
    David Crawford reviews promising current developments. Instrumentation of the road infrastructure has grown to become one of the most dynamic sectors of the ITS industry. Drivers for its deployment include global concerns over the commercial and environmental pressures of traffic congestion, the importance of keeping drivers informed throughout their journeys, and the need to reduce accident rates and promote the safety of all road users, for example by enforcing traffic safety rules.
    Read More
  • Travel data critical to traffic management, traveller information
    January 31, 2012
    The ability to bundle together travel data from several discrete sources and fuse it to give a more comprehensive overview of events to stakeholders is the key aim of Viajeo, which is conducting trials in several cities around the world. Here, Ertico's Yanying Li writes about the project in more detail
    Read More
  • Close shave for Brazilian project
    June 12, 2015
    Signing the order to equip a new control room just 45 days before the city hosts a major sporting event is challenging - but some deadlines just cannot be moved. There is nothing like a deadline to concentrate minds and effort as Mitsubishi and the Brazilian city of Belo Horizonte discovered in the run-up to the 2014 World Cup. Although municipal authorities had been considering a new command centre for years, it was the hosting of the World Cup last summer that provided the final impetus.
    Read More

Highlighted Content