Las Vegas Debuts Navya Shuttle Bus

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Las Vegas will test Navya’s driverless shuttle bus named Arma from January 11 to January 20. With a total traveling distance of just over a mile per journey, the bus will be used for public transit, to connect riders with areas that other modes of mass transit miss.

The fully electric, autonomous bus can hold 12 people, and is capable of traveling up to 27 miles per hour, but for the trial, it will only operate at 12 miles per hour. Operating hours for the bus will be from 10 A.M. to 6 P.M.

For Jorge Cervantes, Las Vegas executive director of community development, the two-week trial will be used as a learning experience for the city.

“It’s a matter of fine-tuning the technology to make sure it’s safe,” Cervantes says via the Las Vegas Sun. “The last thing we want is for something to happen.”

Before the trial officially began, Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman rode in the shuttle on January 10. Goodman had some apprehension before riding in the vehicle, but came away very pleased with her experience and the bus itself.

“Being the control freak that I am, I was very nervous to get on this vehicle, but it is clean, has beautiful air and moves sort of swiftly but so beautifully down Fremont East,” Goodman says.

For Goodman, this kind of technology could have a variety of uses in the city, including potentially tourism.

“We have so many exciting places to visit, and we want to get this on a route that will repeat itself so people can move quickly from the hotels, go back to a restaurant, go back to their hotel and get around town safely,” Goodman says via News 3 Las Vegas

If all goes well, there's a possibility that the busses could be used regularly as early as this summer or fall.

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