RUSSIA: A fully automated driverless tram has entered regular passenger service in Moskva, following the completion of a multi-stage testing programme.
The tram is operating on Route 10 from Shchukinskaya metro station to Ul Kulakova in the northwest of the city.
‘Today is a special day in the history of Moskva transport — we launched the first fully unmanned tram in Russia’, operator Moskva Metro said on September 3. ‘This is a very significant technological milestone.’
Developed in-house
Moskva Metro and the Centre for Electric Transport & Driverless Technologies fitted the PK TS 71-911EM Lvyonok singe-section tram with six cameras and four lidar and three radar systems. These create a high-precision 3D map of the surroundings for navigation and identifying objects.
The operator said the software was developed in-house without the involvement of third-party companies, and ‘works more accurately and stably than foreign counterparts’. The tram has travelled more than 8 000 km in test mode without violating traffic rules.
The tram autonomously stops in the correct places, opens and closes the doors, obeys traffic lights, gives way to pedestrians, independently determines how to cross road junctions, sets turnouts and adheres to the timetable.
Test programme
The first stage of testing without passengers took place from May to August 2024, with a driver able to make the final decisions.
This was followed by a second stage of testing with the driverless system having full control including opening and closing doors, with a driver in the cab to oversee the tram’s actions as it operated with and without passengers during the tests.
The tram is now running in passenger service with a member of staff onboard to meet federal legal requirements, but they only observe and do not get involved in operations.
Next steps
Moskva Metro plans to equip three more trams for automatic operation by the end of the year, and more than 300 by 2030, about two-thirds of the fleet. It expects that by 2035 about 90% of the city’s trams will operate using unmanned technologies.
The first phase of pilot operation of a driverless metro train on the Big Circle Line is planned for December, running at night and without passengers.
