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Hainan's Haikou begins testing of buses with self-driving technology

The introduction of autonomous driving on public transport will reduce the number of accidents caused by the human factor and increase overall traffic safety, believe the local authorities

HAIKOU, April 16. /TASS/. A pilot program to test fully automated buses with self-driving technology has been launched in Haikou's new Jiangdong district in China's southern Hainan province, reported www.hinews.cn.

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Chinese scientists to assess Hainan's ecosystem by June 2021

As part of the project, which is a part of the authorities' smart city program, an unmanned bus has already been launched on one of the routes, which runs on a 5.7 km section between B1 stop on Baiju Avenue to its intersection with Dachan Street.

A fourth-level unmanned driving system is installed in a 12-seater bus, the news outlet writes. In this section, it develops a speed of up to 40 km/h. When driving on a set route, no intervention in the control system from the driver is required, however, in case of emergency, the control can be switched to manual mode.

The news outlet's article indicates that the introduction of autonomous driving on public transport will reduce the number of accidents caused by the human factor and increase overall traffic safety.

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