5G Ride is a concept for self-driving, 5G-connected electric vehicles used in public transport. In the autumn of 2020, the vehicles were tested in traffic at Djurgården in Stockholm. In 2021 the project continues, focusing on the development of the Connected Control Tower. Urban ICT Arena manages the project in close partnership with Ericsson, Keolis, Telia, Intel and T-engineering.
The purpose of the project is to demonstrate safe monitoring with 5G, transfer the driver to an outside position of the vehicle and releasing resources for improved public transports. The 5G network’s unique technical features, including enhanced security, extremely high data speeds combined with low latency, means that the connected buses can respond in real time to commands from the centralized control tower. The project got a lot of positive media coverage see some of the links below.
There were several challenges in a project like this with many different technologies and providers that needed to work together to create a complete working system. In 5G Ride a demonstration system was made for public testing to show capabilities of autonomous vehicles and how they can benefit from a 5G connection. However, besides technology improvements needed, it is also customer acceptance and legal frameworks for autonomous driving on public roads that deserve great attention and remain a challenge for the future.
At T-engineering we take great pride in delivering fast results and with a wide variety of skills. This project is a perfect example of many different parts coming together like electronics, mechanics, advanced software, testing; and to successfully work in an open and solution oriented collaboration with our partners. T-engineering is small enough to be very agile but large enough to be able to provide many different services and skills.
The aim is to develop smart, scalable urban public transport solutions that are capable of providing reliable and sustainable services to growing populations. Stockholm is not the largest city in the world but just imagine the impact that 5G-connected and automated vehicles could have on bigger urban areas around the world like New York, Tokyo or Shanghai. The automotive industry in the world is currently in a very exciting time with the 4 main focus areas: Autonomous, Connected, Electrical and shared vehicles. T-engineering is with this and other projects a small part of shaping the future of transportation.
