Testing of driverless vehicles in one-north area likely to start in March

SINGAPORE - Driverless vehicles may be tested in the one-north area from March 2015, with a 6km network of roads connecting Biopolis, Fusionopolis and Mediapolis being identified for that purpose.

This will be the first time public roads are used for the trial of autonomous vehicle technology. Up till now, driverless vehicles have only been tested within the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University campuses and the Jurong Lake District.

Revealing details of the test route and safety requirements on Tuesday, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and JTC Corporation (JTC) said they are now inviting applicants to propose their preferred test programmes and test routes.

LTA and JTC said that test vehicles will need to undergo a vehicle-safety assessment and will have to be fitted with data recorders to keep track of information such as the date and time of the test, the speed of the vehicle and whether the vehicle's autonomous mode has been activated.

adrianl@sph.com.sg

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