CityMobil2 demonstration in Lausanne inaugurated by French and Swiss Presidents
During his official visit to Switzerland and between two negotiations on taxation and immigration, Mr. François Hollande made a detour via the campus of Lausanne and the CityMobil2 project. On 16th April, the President of France, together with his Swiss counterpart, Ms. Simonetta Sommaruga came to the campus of the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in order to inaugurate the automated road passenger transport system which will operate in Lausanne until the end of June.
In the framework of the CityMobil2 project, six driverless vehicles operate on the EPFL campus as part of the second large-scale demonstration of the project (after La Rochelle - France). Constructed by the French company Easymile and remotely controlled by a software developed by the Swiss startup BestMile, the vehicles can transport ten people along an itinerary within the campus. The public is therefore invited to test these vehicles between Mondays and Fridays.
CityMobil2 demonstrations implement additional offers for public transport in cities in order to address the needs of passengers in areas of low or dispersed demand or in order to provide a solution to cover the “last mile” of a trip.
About CityMobil2
CityMobil2 is a multi-stakeholder project co-funded by the EU’s Seventh Framework Programme for research and technological development (commonly known as FP7). CityMobil2 has set up a pilot platform for automated road transport systems, which are being implemented in several urban environments across Europe. Automated transport systems are made up of vehicles operating without a driver in collective mode.
More information:
Website: www.citymobil2.eu
Picture: ©Alain Herzog