Intersection

Our experience on the country’s first driverless shuttle

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NAVYA’s ARMA vehicle started public testing on Fremont Street.
Photo: L.E. Baskow

You’re already used to a world with touchscreen soda fountains and voice-activated lights—what about a driverless shuttle? The City of Las Vegas has teamed with French companies NAVYA and Keolis to test an electric-powered autonomous transport shuttle, dubbed the ARMA, with free rides on Fremont Street through January 20. I took the pint-sized bus for a jaunt, and it felt surprisingly reliable, thanks to ARMA’s state-of-the-art, multi-sensor technology. It detected a pigeon, a cyclist, pedestrians in a crosswalk and Keolis’ Londell Triché, who trusts the bus enough to step in front of it. “I do this all day,” Triché says. “Public education is key. We’ve had people afraid to walk out into the street, because they’re afraid it’s going to go.” Triché says more than 100,000 people have been transported safely since Keolis’ 2015 launch. Make that 100,001.

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Leslie Ventura

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