Autonomous vehicles will be coming to the streets of Indianapolis and Fishers this year as part of a pilot project, partners in the initiative announced Thursday.
The partners include the Toyota Mobility Foundation, the Indiana Economic Development Corp., Energy Systems Network and the autonomous vehicle companies May Mobility and Udelv.
Ann Arbor, Michigan-based May Mobility plans to launch a six-month shuttle service in Indianapolis in May that will be open to the public, the Toyota Mobility Foundation said. Service will run between IndyGo’s existing Red Line Vermont station on Capitol Avenue and “areas west of downtown,” according to the announcement.
The Indianapolis shuttle will use five Lexus RX450h vehicles and one wheelchair-accessible Polaris GEM shuttle vehicle, all equipped with May Mobility’s autonomous technology.
Autonomous shuttle service will launch in Fishers in November, the announcement said.
As part of the project, May Mobility plans to establish a regional headquarters at the Indiana Internet of Things Lab in Fishers.
Burlingame, California-based Udelv will also be launching an autonomous vehicle in Indianapolis this year. The Udelv vehicle will be a Toyota Sienna minivan equipped with Udelv technology.
The announcement does not give other specifics regarding shuttle routes or schedules.
“Additional details about the Future Mobility District initiative deployments and how to get involved will be made available in the coming months leading up to the launch of the pilots,” organizers said.
Founded in 2014, the Toyota Mobility Foundation is a Japan-based, not-for-profit organization focused on next-generation mobility services, products and platforms. In October, the foundation designated Indiana as its first U.S. Future Mobility District. The district, whose partners include the IEDC and the Indianapolis-based not-for-profit initiative Energy Systems Network, aims to promote innovation, research and development in advanced mobility technologies.