Self-driving cars: give way to robotic taxis

What is commonplace on some US highways will soon be seen more often on German roads: self-driving cars. The ITS World Congress, which begins today in Hamburg, also revolves around autonomous driving.

It doesn’t look nice from the outside. But Valeo’s autonomous car has everything it takes to get through traffic without a driver: a series of sensors attached to the exterior of the vehicle. And inside, several cameras broadcast what is happening in front of and behind the vehicle. The Valeo robotic taxi slowly rolls away. The first camera soon sends a red signal: a red traffic light. The car slows down slowly.

The Robotaxi leaves the Munich exhibition center – and gradually picks up speed. Then it slows down again: a car in front has to turn. The next traffic light is approaching, and the inconspicuous concept vehicle brakes early again. Now the most difficult task follows: the driveway to the motorway. There is rush hour traffic, the Valeo vehicle is having a hard time and there is no gap. The driver of the vehicle must intervene and operate the steering wheel so that the threading still works before the brakes are fully applied. “Well,” says the responsible Valeo manager, “it’s not all perfect yet”.

Jerky test drive with the autonomous Valeo test vehicle

Driving on the Munich ring road runs smoothly. Vehicles overtaking or driving ahead are easily recognized. The car keeps a long safe distance. There are no moments of shock on the return trip. The exit from the autobahn works just as smoothly as the re-entry onto the city ring. This time there is less traffic. After 20 minutes, the autonomous car arrives back at the Munich exhibition center without scratches.

The test drive from Valeo shows how far autonomous driving has already progressed in Germany. Several car manufacturers and suppliers are currently testing a variety of robotic taxis, fully equipped with cameras, radar and lidar sensors. The first self-driving vehicles could soon go into regular operation.

Sixt will start Robotaxi service in Munich in 2022

Munich should become a pioneer. There will be a European premiere there next year: The car rental company Sixt and the Intel subsidiary Mobileye want to put the first fleet of self-driving cars on the road in 2022. Sixt and Mobileye emphasize that the Munich project is the first commercial robot taxi service from a technology provider and a mobility service provider.

Initially, 25 autonomous e-cars from the Chinese company Nio will be on the road all over Munich. They can be booked through apps. A chauffeur sits in the car, but only has to intervene in an emergency. “As soon as the vehicle is approved, it will also be driverless,” promises Mobileye manager Johann Jungwirth. At the end of 2022, empty cars could be shuttling back and forth between the airport and Munich city center as if by magic, he believes.

VW is planning an autonomous fleet in Hamburg

In other German cities, it will take longer for the first commercial robotic taxis to roll through the streets. VW is planning a fleet of autonomous cars for 2025 that will be used by the mobility service provider MOIA. The Wolfsburg-based company recently unveiled its prototype, the ID.Buzz electric truck, at the IAA. “Autonomous driving will change our industry like nothing before,” said VW boss Herbert Diess at the Munich auto show. In comparison, the switch to e-cars was downright easy.

After the “Big Techs” pushed autonomous driving in the USA and China, the German carmakers are now smelling a billion-dollar business. As early as 2030, 15 percent of sales could be made with mobility services, VW boss Diess recently predicted. The management consultancy PwC sees a market potential of 500 billion dollars for the Robotaxi services in the future. The ride in the Robotaxi could be billed as a subscription or by the hour.

The car managers like at VW rave about the “democratization of mobility”. Disabled people and elderly people who are no longer fit to drive could also use a robotaxi in the future. The people who are born now won’t need a driver’s license later, the industry jokes.

“Renaissance of the car”

The self-driving cars will “totally change our lives”, enthuses car expert Ferdinand Dudenhöffer from the Center Automotive Research (CAR). “We will experience a renaissance of the car,” he predicts.

There is still a long way to go before then. For the time being, the automakers are still testing the robotic taxis of tomorrow – in close collaboration with Silicon Valley. Daimler is cooperating with Nvidia, VW is working with the US start-up Argo AI and is running pilot projects in several US cities. According to Argo founder Brian Salesky, VW and Argo AI are working on a global system for robotic taxis.

Law makes Germany a pioneer

Technology-shy Germany, of all places, could help the self-driving car achieve a breakthrough. In July, the Bundestag passed a law on autonomous driving that is considered particularly progressive. Germany is the only country that allows level 3 and even level 4 systems under certain conditions. In the USA, only individual states have so far advanced and allow robotic taxis on selected routes. In China, too, autonomous driving is only possible in individual metropolises. However, cities like Shenzhen have long been a step further and have robotic taxis without a driver at the wheel in regular operation.

It is therefore no wonder that a Chinese car is now being used in Munich for the first commercial German robotaxi project. The first mid-range vehicles with driving robots are not expected to hit the market for four to five years – for prices starting at 35,000 euros. VW is planning an electric sedan with level 4 for 2026 under the “Trinity” project.

Mercedes-S-Class is already driving level 3

The first premium vehicles already have semi-autonomous functions. The new electric S-Class from Mercedes, the EQS series, is equipped with a motorway traffic jam pilot. The vehicle can drive autonomously in traffic jams or slow-moving traffic on the motorway, and the driver can take his hand off the wheel. “We are the first to put Level 3 on the road in regular operation in Germany”, announced proudly at the IAA Daimler boss Ola Källenius. Even Tesla hasn’t gotten past level 2 yet. There are five levels on the autonomous driving scale. At level 3, the driver no longer has to constantly monitor everything and can temporarily take his hands off the steering wheel.

A number of car manufacturers and suppliers presented their autonomous test vehicles at the IAA. Trade visitors were able to drive the robotic taxis on a trial basis. The suppliers are also tinkering with cars without a steering wheel and autonomous sub-functions. Bosch, for example, has developed an automated valet parking function. The technology should go into series production at Stuttgart Airport this year. The Bosch managers believe that the system could become standard in a good 1,000 parking garages by 2025.

Over 40 pilot projects with autonomous shuttles

In a good 40 German cities and municipalities, self-driving minibuses are already commuting slowly and almost silently through the area. The robotic taxis are in use in Hamburg, Berlin, Frankfurt or even in the small town of Bad Birnbach. They are still in test operation. In other EU countries, the autonomous shuttles are still in the minority: at Paris Charles-de-Gaulle airport, a mini-bus brings employees to the office, in Stockholm an autonomous mini-van is being tested with 5G, and one is transported to Pörtschach, Austria Minibus tourists from the train station to the town center. So far, however, there are only two providers in Europe – Naviya and EasyMile – both from France – who offer the shuttles as standard.

In the smart cities competition, cities are looking for the ideal mobility concept. At the World Congress ITS for Mobility and Logistics, which begins today in Hamburg, the Free Hanseatic City in particular wants to distinguish itself as a pioneer. There, experts in transport, logistics and digitization will meet for a week to discuss what commercial and private transport might look like given the climate crisis and increasing mobility demands. In the newly renovated CCH congress center, the exhibition halls and in the city area, around 400 exhibitors from all over the world will be showing ideas and solutions for all aspects of intelligent traffic systems. “ITS” stands for “Intelligent Transport Systems”. The congress is given to different cities every year.