By: Ruth Bridger – Marketing Director at Imagry
Japan’s bus-driver shortage is currently at approximately 20% of needed staffing levels. Furthermore, within a decade, a full 40% of current Japanese bus drivers are set to retire. Customers are witnessing notices posted on bus stops that apologize for disruption of services and cancelation of scheduled routes due to lack of manpower. It is obvious that a solution needs to be found, and quickly!
Imagry, a provider of AI-based, camera-only autonomous driving technology for public transportation, has recently announced a novel approach to this problem. Together with Toyota Tsusho, Imagry will soon deploy a fully tested and internationally certified autonomous bus in Japan. This program is in line with the stated desire of Japanese government to see 100 autonomous bus deployments in Japan by the end of 2027.
Key Advantages of the Imagry Solution
• Rigorous Validation: Imagry autonomous buses are the first to meet UNR 155 cybersecurity protocols and have achieved a perfect score in Euro NCAP safety scenarios.
• Field-Proven & Authorized: Since 2019, Imagry has been operating autonomous vehicles on public roads, with deployments in Japan, the U.S., Germany, and Israel. Furthermore, the company was selected as an “Autonomous Transport System Vendor” by Transdev (the world’s largest public transportation operator).
• Superior Performance: The system reduces latency to a minimum, providing a sub-100ms reaction time—significantly faster than the average human driver—resulting in a safe and reliable transportation system.
Self-driving Buses Provide Numerous Benefits
Autonomous buses allow transit operators to expand their fleets, extend their reach, and increase route frequency and hours of operation despite the driver shortage. This improves ROI, and in turn supports mobility equity, increases passenger satisfaction, promotes green energy, and reduces road congestion.
Main Features of the Self-Driving Bus Platform to be Demonstrated
A 6.9-meter-long electric midi-bus has been selected as the basis for this pilot. It can carry up to 38 passengers. Software and hardware installation, integration, and testing will be performed in the bus manufacturing factory as part of the standard production process. As a result, customers (PTOs) will be provided with fully integrated buses ready for immediate deployment.
Imagry will Establish Easy-to-Replicate Autonomous Bus Platform
The pilot route, aligned with existing service areas operated by PTOs, will feature bus stops and be carried out on public roads used by mixed vehicles, with a variety of traffic signals and road markings. PTOs from all over the country will be able to visit the site to experience the autonomous driving capabilities demonstrated.
Autonomous Bus Deployment Will Be the First of Many
“We are thrilled to bring Imagry autonomous driving solutions to the Japanese public transportation market, together with Toyota Tsusho as our local partner,” said Eran Ofir, CEO of Imagry. “The combination of Imagry’s field-proven AI-based software and Toyota Tsusho’s broad industry and government network, and project-delivery expertise, will provide a much-needed solution to the local public transportation challenges, and position Japan as a world leader in public transportation innovation.”
The first fully integrated autonomous bus featuring Imagry’s mapless, location-independent software is ready for deployment in the Japanese market.