Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), along with Cruise, the American self-driving and autonomous vehicle company, have started mapping out the roads in Jumeirah 1, to launch self-driving taxis.
Five Chevy Bolt vehicles have been collecting data from traffic signals, road signs and driving patterns to ensure safe transport while using the taxi services.
The launch is in line with the aim of making Dubai the smartest city in the world.
Ahmed Hashem Bahrozyan, CEO of Public Transport Agency at RTA said, "Data collection and testing is a crucial phase in Dubai's quest for excellence in smart mobility and advanced technology. The work being done will ensure Cruise’s advanced generalisable AI and autonomous driving systems safely adapt to Dubai traffic conditions. This stage of data collection and testing for Dubai’s traffic environment will utilise five Chevy Bolt-based autonomous vehicles that will be deployed in the Jumeirah 1 area. The aim is to obtain the best readings and data through onboard lidars, radars and cameras that capture data and images within a 360-degree field of vision."
By 2030, 4,000 Cruise self-driving taxis will be on the roads, which will mark Dubai as the first city outside the United States to utilise Cruise self-driving cars.