Over the years, car manufacturers have shared how they believe autonomous vehicle ride share services will look like in a future of full vehicle autonomy. Today, we thought we’d explore these concepts.

First, let’s look at the background to autonomous vehicle ride sharing: the what and the why. 

Autonomous Vehicles (AVs) are technologically advanced vehicles with a degree of autonomy. They have a high level of computerised decision making which ultimately will enable them to operate without a driver. Levels of automation in vehicles can vary but according to the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) International, there are 6 levels of automation: 

Autonomous Vehicle Ride Sharing Services (AVRS) then are the combination of AVs and ride sharing; a service which enables two or more passengers to share the same vehicle, where they have similar trip origins and destinations. 

AVRS are considered to benefit both people and the environment, due their ability to: 

• Provide convenience for travellers by simplifying the process of getting from point A to B   

• Reduce congestion by decreasing the number of vehicles on the road creating better linkages between vehicles and public transport 

• Reduce air pollution by decreasingthe number of ICT vehicles on the road (AVRS will likely be electric) 

• Encourage the idea of ridership rather than ownership by eliminating individually owned vehicles

But what will an AVRS service actually look like? We’ve put together three concepts (likely to be of many!) that have been designed by automobile producers and design agencies, and that we are testing with the public as part of the user engagement work we’re doing for Project Endeavour: 

Origin AVRS concept by Cruise (General Motors subsidiary)

Origin is an electric shuttle bus built for the ridesharing market. Other than the main and obvious characteristic of not having a driver or a steering wheel, Origin is notable for  its interiors, which have been optimised to maximise space and comfort.  The vehicles feature subway sliding doors, two benches facing each other for passengers to sit on, and two screens. The screens display the journey for passengers, so they know what to expect. 

Zoe Cab, AVRS concept by Renault

Renault conducted a public trial of two AVRS services for a month in 2019 with 100 participants, where passengers could hail the vehicle via their smartphone (similar to existing rideshare services such as Uber). When booking, the service users could select  how many passengers they were booking for and when they would like to be collected. Unlike Origin, the interiors of the Zoe cabs consisted of front and rear seats, with riders having visibility of the steering wheel and its autonomous movement. Depending on the vehicle, passengers either had individual or shared touch screens to access different services, including journey display, notifications of additional passengers and vehicle temperature settings.

Joyn, AVRS concept by LAYER

Joyn, an eight passenger AVRS concept, consists of modular seats that are separated by adjustable ‘wings’ that can be configured in various ways to meet the needs of the passenger. For instance, the wings can be closed to mimic a cubicle to maximise privacy for individual passengers, or they can be adjusted to allow the seats to face each other when  a group is travelling together. Joyn is accompanied by its own intuitive app that allows riders to engage with each other, and rewards passengers for positive sustainable behavior, i.e. by travelling in a rideshare journey. 

These are just a few examples of the various AVRS concepts that are out there and show the varied experience for end users. At DG Cities we believe that for AVRS to reach their full potential, it’s vital that the public, as future users, are aware of these design concepts and are able to express theirviews about them.  This must be a key part of any deployment strategy, alongside engagement work with transport authorities and cities, to ensure that any services are aligned and serve the broader goals and needs of our urban areas  

Do you have thoughts on the above?  Perhaps you have another vision in mind?  We’d love to hear from you.  Tell us your thoughts and expectations in our latest survey for Project Endeavour here. 

In the coming weeks we will be running a number of focus groups with members of the public to understand their ideal AVRS service design and what would encourage them to use these services in the future. Stay tuned for more information. 

To discuss how our Research and Service Design practice could support you, drop us a line at [email protected].