Autonomous Shuttle and Robot Taxi Tests to Begin at Pangyo

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park No-hun] A 7km section of the Pangyo autonomous driving demonstration complex has been designated as an autonomous vehicle pilot zone by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, paving the way for diverse autonomous driving-based transportation services including driverless shuttles and robot taxis.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport held an 'Autonomous Vehicle Pilot Zone Committee' meeting and announced on the 26th that it has designated the Pangyo autonomous driving demonstration complex as an autonomous vehicle pilot zone.

The pilot zone is a newly introduced system under the Autonomous Vehicle Act, which took effect in May of last year, and is a regulatory sandbox district designed to support the demonstration of autonomous driving services. With this designation, the Pangyo autonomous driving demonstration complex can now obtain various regulatory exemptions, including permission for paid passenger transportation and exemption from vehicle safety standards when issuing temporary operation permits, allowing for demonstration from a business operation perspective while collecting actual fares.

Consequently, demonstrations in autonomous driving-based transportation and logistics service fields, such as driverless shuttles and robot taxis, are expected to become more active.

The Pangyo Zero City autonomous vehicle pilot zone covers a 7km route spanning Pangyo Techno Valley 1 and Valley 2 (from Pangyo Station to Gyeonggi Business Growth Center). This year, centered on Pangyo Techno Valley 1, various paid and free mobility services targeting Pangyo workers and residents are planned to be demonstrated.

Within Pangyo Techno Valley 1, on-demand robot taxi service (driverless call taxi) will be implemented, and a circular shuttle service to Gyeonggi Business Growth Center will be introduced.

Based on the results of the first year of operation, user-oriented transportation convenience services will be gradually expanded.

As South Korea's first open platform enabling autonomous vehicle demonstration on actual roads, the Pangyo autonomous driving demonstration complex is expected to become a testing ground for diverse companies' autonomous driving business models through this pilot zone designation.

It is anticipated that this will have positive effects on technology development and service expansion for companies developing autonomous driving technology.

Gyeonggi Province plans to announce operator recruitment in May, select operators, and begin autonomous driving services.

Lim Moon-young, Gyeonggi Province's Future Growth Policy Officer, said, "Gyeonggi Province has pioneered investment in the construction and operation of the Pangyo autonomous driving demonstration complex and continues to provide support to foster an autonomous driving ecosystem. We hope that this designation of the autonomous vehicle pilot zone will give more citizens a closer experience with autonomous driving and provide related companies an opportunity to demonstrate their technology and services through Pangyo."

Meanwhile, Gyeonggi Province launched the Gyeonggi Autonomous Driving Center in May 2019 and has been stably operating the Pangyo autonomous driving demonstration complex based on actual roads, actively supporting startup demonstration tests and big data services based on this foundation.

With this zone designation as an opportunity, Gyeonggi Province plans to gradually expand the scope of the pilot zone by reviewing the need for service expansion.