Dubai aims to be the world's "smartest city," and in line with this initiative, the country has been focusing on technological innovation. Recently, the country unveiled its first driverless bus service and has announced that it would be expanding its month-long trial of the technology across the Gulf country.

Like Us on Facebook

Dubai launched its trial of the driverless bus on Thursday, Sept 1. The 10-seat vehicle made its first trip along a 700-meter road in Downtown Dubai near the world's largest tower, the Burj Khalifa. The Emirates Road Transport told DNA India that the bus can navigate between the country's main tourist attractions. Passengers can ride through the Dubai Mall, Souk al-Bahar shopping center, Dubai Opera, and the Burj Khalifa.

The vehicle was jointly designed and developed by the French groups, Easy Mile and Omnix. According to the developers, the vehicle is equipped with a 15Kv battery which enables it to run for four hours with air-conditioning on a single charge, or ten hours without air-conditioning, Tech Spot reported. It has built-in sensors and cameras with a 270-degree vision capacity that enables the vehicle to detect obstacles. The vehicle is also equipped with a roof top navigation system with two laser sensors and a GPS for tracking the programmed route.

Easy Mile and Omnix said that the vehicle is programed to give passengers free rides. Aside from its convenience, the advance technology also enables the vehicle to detect pedestrians and is equipped with movable access ramps for disabled passengers.

The Board Chairman and Executive Director of Dubai's Road Transport Authority, Mattar Al Tayer, said that the experiment is part of the department's attempt to test the efficiency of driverless vehicles in the country.

Given that Dubai is considered the leading tourist destination in the Gulf region, the country aims to provide its people and visitors with convenient navigation. He stated that the government is planning to make a quarter of Dubai's transport service automated by the year 2030.