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    1. Alt. Mobility
    2. Autonomous Vehicles

    Two projects further strengthen bonds between microtransit and autonomous vehicles

    Aug. 8, 2019
    Optimus Ride launches Brooklyn Navy Yard self-driving system while PerceptIn and LHP Engineering Solutions form a new partnership to deliver autonomous transport options.
    Business Wire
    Optimus Ride launched New York state's first commercial self-driving vehicle system at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
    Optimus Ride launched New York state's first commercial self-driving vehicle system at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.

    The launch of a program at Brooklyn Navy Yard and a new partnership between a robotics and engineering company in Indiana further exemplify the niche autonomous vehicles are carving out in microtransit applications.  

    Six autonomous vehicles started transporting commuters between Brooklyn’s NYC Ferry stop at Dock 72 and the Brooklyn Navy Yard Cumberland Gate on Aug. 7. Optimus Ride, the self-driving vehicle technology company behind the service, says its aim is to provide a safe, efficient means of mobility in areas where there is a lack of options

    An estimated 500 passengers per day and more than 16,000 passengers per month will make the trip via the AVs to the Brooklyn Navy Yard industrial park, which is undergoing a $1 billion expansion and houses more than 400 manufacturing businesses and 10,000 onsite employees. Optimus Rides notes there will be a safety driver and software operator in the vehicle. The system will run on a continuous loop between 7:00 am and 10:30 pm on weekdays between the dock and the Cumberland Gate. On weekends the system will run between the dock and Building 77 during those same time periods.

    Ryan Chin, CEO and co-founder of Optimus Ride, said the launch of the Brooklyn Navy Yard service is validation that “autonomous vehicles can solve real-world problems in structured environments.”

    In other microtransit and AV news, PerceptIn and LHP Engineering Solutions (LHP) have partnered to deliver autonomous modular solutions that the companies say will transform a traditional human-operated vehicle into a self-driving machine.

    PerceptIn's DragonFly Pod is a low-speed, road-ready vehicle that combines vision-based sensor fusion with a modular computing system. LHP will bring its functional safety and data analytics expertise to the partnership, which LHP CEO and Co-Founder David Glass explains “can introduce connected autonomous solutions to an industry without risking any disruptions to consumer safety.”

    Shaoshan Liu, CEO and founder of PerceptIn, believes the partnership can revolutionize the microtransit industry and envisions delivery of services to public transit in urban settings, such as on university campuses, in city centers or at corporate campuses.

    About the Author

    Mischa Wanek-Libman | Editor in Chief

    Mischa Wanek-Libman serves as editor in chief of Mass Transit magazine. She is responsible for developing and maintaining the magazine’s editorial direction and is based in the western suburbs of Chicago.

    Wanek-Libman has spent more than 20 years covering transportation issues including construction projects and engineering challenges for various commuter railroads and transit agencies. She has been recognized for editorial excellence through her individual work, as well as for collaborative content. 

    She is an active member of the American Public Transportation Association's Marketing and Communications Committee and serves as a Board Observer on the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) Board of Directors.  

    She is a graduate of Drake University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication with a major in magazine journalism and a minor in business management.

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