Autonomous driving hits the land through KIRA's innovation

In the heart of Hesse, a unique project is underway. KIRA, an autonomous electric SUV, has been testing public transportation at Level 4 of automation in the town of Langen, marking the first of its kind in Germany.

The project, operated by Deutsche Bahn, Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund, Mobileye, and Bosch, has been running since the end of May. KIRA, which stands for "AI-based regular operation of autonomous on-demand traffic," is a collaboration aimed at gathering experiences in regular operation and developing strategies for the most sensible use of highly autonomous electric shuttles.

The white car with unusual attachments on the train station plaza in Frankfurt is none other than KIRA, produced by Nio and equipped with additional radar, lidar, and camera systems. During its test drive, KIRA has been moving effortlessly through traffic, maintaining safe distances, and adhering to traffic rules.

However, safety is paramount, and a human safety driver, Adam Fowler, one of the safety drivers for KIRA in the Langen pilot project, is always on board. Fowler must press the red dead man's switch every 30 seconds to signal that he is on board and alert. His role is to monitor the safety systems during the testing phase and intervene if necessary.

In a recent incident, Fowler had to intervene when KIRA missed a car approaching from the left on a priority road. He promptly pressed one of three buttons on the center console to record the incident in the data storage system located in the trunk of the Nio.

Saud Ahmed Nasir, a student of electrical engineering from Darmstadt, serves as an "explainer" in the KIRA vehicles during his internship. He answers passengers' questions en route and prohibits driver-passenger conversations to allow the driver to focus fully on the road.

The fare for this service would be more expensive than a bus ticket but cheaper than a taxi ride. Currently, it's free and only possible on weekdays between 9:30 AM and 3:30 PM, with plans for expanding regular operations and special fares. KIRA is driving autonomously through the city as a kind of on-demand taxi and bus replacement, but with a safety driver behind the wheel.

The town of Langen, with 40,000 inhabitants, was chosen for the pilot project because public transportation is often meager in rural areas. KIRA accurately recognises speed limits and reliably maintains safe distances from cyclists and parked cars, making every driving instructor pleased with its city traffic navigation.

Project leader Thorsten Möginger is confident that this innovative form of on-demand mobility will be successful in the long run, making public transportation in rural areas more attractive and allowing transportation companies to save costs by eliminating drivers. The software update, if developed, is expected to be available the next day.

There is only one other vehicle in operation, and two more electric vehicles are exploring the neighboring city of Darmstadt for future autonomous shuttle service. The recorded data is uploaded to the cloud via the control center in Weiterstadt for analysis by Mobileye's specialists, including former VW board member Johann Jungwirth. The goal of the project is to gather experiences in regular operation and develop strategies for the most sensible use of highly autonomous electric shuttles.