Autonomous trials for Golden Dragon’s A-Star in Suzhou and Xiamen
Published on: 5th March 2021
The electric shuttle bus designed by DCA has been a very successful product for Golden Dragon since its launch in 2019. The electric shuttle bus was designed for a range of different configurations, including an autonomous version. It is this version of the shuttle bus that has started trials in Xiamen, China, shortly after a similar trial started in Suzhou late last year.
The autonomous version is equipped with 21 radars and more than a dozen cameras, most of which have been cleverly concealed within the design.
Since its launch, it has gone into operation in cities like Tel Aviv, Beijing, Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Erdos, Guangdong, Fujian, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Sichuan and Shaanxi. With, Wuhan, Suzhou and Xiamen now also welcoming the A-Star to their city centres, and order books looking strong for 2021, the A Star remains one of the most popular semi-autonomous vehicles in the world.
The shuttle bus has been very successful due to its compact size and advanced technologies, and is praised by passengers and operators alike. The interior is designed with ease of maintenance in mind. The seats can be easily wiped down and disinfected to ensure passenger safety with minimal downtime.
Although the A-Star has been operated without a driver in some places, in most situations regulations require a safety operator to monitor the self-driving vehicle. As legislation and technologies further develop, we should see more driverless versions in operation, making it an even better tool for cities to deploy in their battles to alleviate congestion and pollution in densely populated areas.
