From Friday 12th June, Sohjoa Baltic’s long-term open traffic robot bus pilot in Estonia is finally running again! During the summer 2020, project partners Tallinn Transport Department and Tallinn University of Technology plan to operate the bus until end of August.
The first long-term open traffic robot bus pilot in Estonia by Sohjoa Baltic was running from August 2019 in Tallinn and the passengers were excited. The pilot was put on hold due to technical issues a month later, and has been waiting for the Covid-19 situation to allow to continue.
Operations take place in Kadriorg Park which is located right next to the Presidential Palace and Kadriorg Palace. The bus makes a circle around the park and takes the passengers to the Estonian Art Museum KUMU.
The bus
- runs from Tuesday to Sunday
- seats only max eight passengers at a time
- carries passengers free of charge.
The bus drives around the Kadriorg Park and has four stops:
- Katharinenthal cafeteria located close to the Kadriorg tram stop
- Kadriorg Art Museum
- Estonian Art Museum
- Miiamilla Children’s Museum.
The vehicle will move along the pre-programmed route, but the operator will be present on board to react in the event of an emergency. The operators can also answer the questions related to the bus or ongoing exhibitions in the Estonian Art Museum.
The bus is manufactured by the French company Navya. Before the start of operations, the bus had to pass an exam organized by the Estonian Road Administration to ensure the safety of the bus and its capability to drive in open traffic.
The passengers have also the possibility to answer a questionnaire about the service which is available in EST and ENG. The information from the questionnaire can help to plan future routes and is valuable for the development of robobuses in the future.