RTA Dubai and Next Future Transport launch autonomous pods

The Roads Transport Authority (RTA) of Dubai, in collaboration with Next Future Transport, is testing autonomous mobility pods on the sidelines of the World Government Summit as part of its effort under the future accelerators initiatives. The trial also supports the city's Self-Driving Strategy to make 25% of public transport autonomous by 2030. These pods are designed with the intention of travelling short and medium distances in dedicated lanes and can be coupled in 15 to 20 seconds or detached, depen
February 15, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
The Roads Transport Authority (RTA) of Dubai, in collaboration with Next Future Transport, is testing autonomous mobility pods on the sidelines of the World Government Summit as part of its effort under the %$Linker: 2 External <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-16"?><dictionary /> 0 0 0 link-external future accelerators initiatives false http://www.dubaifuture.gov.ae/our-initiatives/dubai-future-accelerators/ false false%>. The trial also supports the city's Self-Driving Strategy to make 25% of public transport autonomous by 2030.


These pods are designed with the intention of travelling short and medium distances in dedicated lanes and can be coupled in 15 to 20 seconds or detached, depending on the rider's destination, in five seconds. Cameras and electromechanical technologies carry out the coupling and detaching processes, which can be activated in-motion.

Each pod can carry up to ten passengers and has an average speed of 20 k/h. It comes with a three-hour battery capacity; which is chargeable in six hours.

HE Mattar Al Tayer, director-general and chairman of the board of executive directors of the RTA, said: "The RTA has signed an agreement with the American Next Future Inc. to develop autonomous units named NX1 as part of the initial phase of Dubai Future Accelerators. The prototypes of these units are manufactured in Italy and shipped to Dubai to put them on trials. These pods run on a virtual pre-configured and programmed lane and are overseen by the operational system.

“The success of initial tests of these units will bring about a breakthrough in transportation systems that offer innovative mobility solutions and ease snarls in the city. The RTA is keen on ensuring the principle of safety in all services delivered to clients. The autonomous pods have three protection systems in order to ensure full control and avoid crashing into any body. The main system comprises 3D cameras, and the second one is a standby system based on ordinary cameras, and the last is operated manually by the operator.”

Related Content

  • New videos show operation of new Dartford Tunnel safety system
    March 30, 2015
    New animations have been released by the UK Highways Agency showing how the new safety system will operate at the Dartford Crossing. The videos show how the system that is due to be introduced on the northbound carriageway in May will identify and stop oversized vehicles or those carrying dangerous goods from entering the tunnels. They also provide clear advice to drivers of these vehicles about getting in the correct lane in plenty of time which will help minimise the number of times vehicles need to be st
    Read More
  • Flir traffic webinars in November
    November 12, 2015
    The Flir Traficon Academy has organised a series of free, one-hour informative webinars that will teach users more about keeping traffic flowing. 5 November: Vehicle and bicycle presence detector Flir ThermiCam/ TrafiSense is an integrated thermal camera and detector that can be used for vehicle and cycle detection. It does not need light to operate, but uses thermal energy emitted from vehicles and bicyclists. In this webinar, Flir shows how this works, how easy it is to install and to configure Reg
    Read More
  • Over 150km of cycle paths to be implemented in Slovakia
    July 2, 2018
    More than 150km of cycle paths will be implemented in Slovakia to provide commuters with a cleaner alternative to car journeys. The move follows a call from the agriculture and rural development ministry to increase capacity for non-motorised transport. The ministry has now approved 63 cycle projects worth approximately €30.7m, says NewsNow. Gabriela Matecna, agriculture and rural development minister, says €81.8m has now been allocated for non-motorised transport schemes. The ministry has received 87
    Read More
  • Webinar – EV industry for land, sea and air
    March 7, 2014
    Gain an insight into market intelligence for the electric vehicle (EV) industry for land, sea and air with the IDTechEx webinar on Thursday 13 March. This will be a 15 minute overview and demonstration of the IDTechEx Market Intelligence Portal for electric vehicles land, sea and air. There will be time for questions and answers at the end. This webinar will discuss: Market forecasts for electric vehicles; Unique research focus - responding to an emerging trend; and demonstration of the IDTechEx mark
    Read More

Highlighted Content