Autonomous Taxi Unveiled in Tokyo

August 26, 2018

Toyko- An autonomous taxi was unveiled to media in Tokyo on Saturday ahead of the launch on Monday of a test service in the Japanese capital.

The test marks the world's first self-driving taxi service to carry passengers on public roads.

Taxi operator Hinomaru Kotsu Co. and robotics startup ZMP Inc., the developer of the autonomous taxi, are involved in the test.

The metropolitan government plans to provide the two companies with 10 million yen in total financial assistance to support the development of autonomous driving technologies.

Saturday's event involved a 30-minute drive using part of the route in central Tokyo covered by the test.

In the test that lasts until Sept. 8, a Hinomaru Kotsu driver sits in the driver's seat of the taxi and a system operator is in the front passenger seat to prepare for possible emergency situations.

Five seats are available for passengers in the service that travels between the Otemachi and Roppongi districts. A one-way fare is set at 1,500 yen.

Taxi demand is growing in Japan due mainly to a rise in the number of visitors from abroad, making shortages of drivers an increasingly serious issue.

"We aim to make taxi services driverless as early as 2020," Hinomaru Kotsu President and Chief Executive Officer Kazutaka Tomita said at the event, seeking government action to make autonomous taxis legal. Jiji Press