There’s no driver inside the newest shuttle coming to NC State — and that’s OK
A pilotless flying taxi from China began this week’s 2020 Transportation Summit in Raleigh, but it was the second autonomous vehicle featured at the event that North Carolinians will get to ride first.
A boxy, driverless vehicle will begin making a regular loop around N.C. State University’s Centennial Campus starting next month. The electric-powered shuttle, called CASSI, is capable of carrying up to 12 people on pre-programmed routes.
The N.C. Department of Transportation is leasing the shuttle, a model EZ 10 from EasyMile, a French company that is one of several developing vehicles that use cameras, radar, GPS and laser sensors to steer on their own. These kinds of vehicles are coming, said Hannah Cockburn, director of NCDOT’s Integrated Mobility Division, and CASSI will help people experience the technology and start thinking about how it might be used in their communities.
“If we want to be prepared for the future, this is a great, accessible way to begin that conversation,” Cockburn said.
CASSI will loop through the heart of Centennial Campus on weekdays and during special events on weekends, said Mike Kennon, the assistant director of transportation at NCSU. Kennon said the campus, home to NC State’s engineering school and several technology companies, is an ideal place to showcase a futuristic form of transportation.
“The whole premise of the project is to give the students and residents of the area a chance to see the technology, see that it works and build a comfort level with it,” he said.
Like a mini subway car
The EZ 10 looks like a mini subway car on rubber tires, with seats for six, straps hanging from the ceiling and side double-doors that part to let passengers on and off. There’s no steering wheel or seat for a driver. Those attending NCDOT’s Transportation Summit were able to take short trips in CASSI from the basement of the Raleigh Convention Center out into the Red Hat Amphitheater and back.
CASSI, which stands for Connected Autonomous Shuttle Supporting Innovation, has a top speed of 12 miles per hour. It slows down for changes in the pavement, such as raised crosswalks or the dip at a storm drain at the entrance to the convention center. And it stops — suddenly — when something unexpected gets in its way.
Dionysi Damaskopoulos, an engineer for EasyMile, was on board to make sure everything went OK during the runs this week, but he wasn’t driving. He warned passengers to hang on.
“This vehicle may drive slow,” Damaskopoulos told them, “but it stops very quickly.”
As if to illustrate his point, CASSI made a sudden stop on one trip through the amphitheater Wednesday evening that threw standing riders forward into each other. It wasn’t immediately clear what caused it, but Damaskopoulos said the sensors are sensitive.
“We’ve literally had stops for tumbleweeds,” he said.
Yahnay Baptiste, who works in NCDOT’s Office of Civil Rights, described the ride as “nice and smooth,” despite the sudden stop.
“It’s very aware of its surroundings. Very aware,” Baptiste said. “But I loved it. I can’t wait to see the future generations of it.”
Technology will continue to improve
This is EasyMile’s third version of the EZ 10, and Cockburn said the technology will only get better, which is one reason NCDOT is leasing rather than buying. The budget for the project is $500,000, covering the lease, signs along the route and paid attendants who will ride along to answer questions and handle problems.
The state initially planned to use a shuttle called Olli, made by an American firm, Local Motors, but Cockburn said the Olli hasn’t received waivers from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration that would allow it to drive on public streets.
Without the waiver, EZ 10 wouldn’t meet NHTSA standards for low-speed vehicles, Cockburn said. Among other things, it’s too heavy, she said.
“The rules established for low-speed vehicles didn’t contemplate a vehicle like this,” she said.
Neither does state law, which would require a vehicle like this to have rear-view mirrors, even though there’s no driver to use them.
NCDOT has leased CASSI for one year. It will operate at Centennial Campus for six months, and the department will look for two or three other places where it can be used the rest of the year. Cockburn said good candidates include college campuses, business parks and small downtown areas.
This story was originally published January 9, 2020 at 1:03 PM with the headline "There’s no driver inside the newest shuttle coming to NC State — and that’s OK."
