UK - A UK consortium led by autonomous systems provider, Fusion Processing Ltd* of Bristol, together with British bus builder, Alexander Dennis Ltd of Larbert, UK (a NFI Group subsidiary), one of the UK’s largest passenger transportation operators,  Stagecoach Plc, and three others (see below), are to begin public trials of five autonomous diesel buses in Scotland starting in 2020. The vehicles are to operate a 15-mile route between Edinburgh and Fife, across the Forth Road Bridge.

The consortium, which is called the CAVForth project** and is receiving GBP4.35m in funding from the UK government’s Innovate UK fund, used the Coach & Bus UK show 2019 held at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham last month, to demonstrate the UK’s first full-size autonomous bus to the public. The consortium set up a demonstration around an NEC carpark for the public to experience for themselves; the 11.5m Alexander Dennis Enviro200 bus operated in SAE Level 4 autonomous mode (this means that in line with UK regulations, a driver must remain on board during any journey), as it travelled independently from a mock-up bus wash to a fuelling station before disembarking at a bus stop.