Skip to main content

Navya to operate AVs on open roads in Japan

Navya has received approval from the Japanese government to operate autonomous vehicles (AVs) on open roads. The company is demonstrating its Autonom shuttles in Minato Ward, the business and diplomatic district of Tokyo, until 5 July. Navya received approval to carry out the demonstration following an agreement with SB Drive, a subsidiary of SoftBank, and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. A safety driver will remain on board to and intervene in the event of an emergency.
July 4, 2019 Read time: 1 min
Navya has received approval from the Japanese government to operate autonomous vehicles (AVs) on open roads.

The company is demonstrating its Autonom shuttles in Minato Ward, the business and diplomatic district of Tokyo, until 5 July. 

Navya received approval to carry out the demonstration following an agreement with SB Drive, a subsidiary of SoftBank, and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

A safety driver will remain on board to and intervene in the event of an emergency.

Related Content

  • Ohmio opens California HQ
    March 11, 2025
    New Zealand-based autonomous shuttle provider targets US market
  • Co-operative infrastructure reduces congestion, increases safety
    January 30, 2012
    ITS Japan's Chairman Hiroyuki Watanabe talks to ITS International about his country's progress with cooperative infrastructures and how the experience gained to date can benefit similar initiatives elsewhere. Japan gave the rest of the world a taste of the cooperative infrastructure future when, in 1996, it went live with the Vehicle Information and Communication System (VICS). Designed to provide real-time traffic information and alerts to in-vehicle navigation systems with the dual aims of increasing safe
  • Calls for smart motorway halt grow louder
    November 5, 2021
    UK transport select committee says hard shoulder motorways “apparently confuse” drivers
  • CityMobil2 selects first seven sites
    May 7, 2014
    The European project CityMobil2 has selected the first round of sites to run demonstrations and showcases of automated road transport systems, which are made up of vehicles operating without a driver in collective mode, under the control of a fleet and infrastructure supervision system.