HONG KONG - Baidu's Apollo Go began offering free rides in its self-driving cars to residents of Tung Chung on Wednesday, the first time members of the Hong Kong public have been able to ride the company's autonomous vehicles on the streets of a residential new town.
The trial runs for 14 days, through Nov. 3, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. each day, and is expected to carry more than 1,000 people. It is backed by the Transport Department, which said in a paper to the Islands District Council that it supported the event so that residents could experience self-driving technology for themselves.
Riders board at Car Park No. 1 of Yat Tung Estate for a loop of about 5.1 kilometers that takes roughly 15 minutes. The route runs along Chung Yan Road, Yu Tung Road and Yi Tung Road to the Sheraton Hong Kong Tung Chung Hotel and back, with no stops along the way, passing traffic lights and roundabouts in the town center.
The cars are not yet operating without people aboard. A backup operator sits in the driver's seat of each vehicle, ready to take control if needed, and passengers must ride in the back, at most two to a car. Eight vehicles are being used for the trial, the Hong Kong tech site Unwire reported, citing information from Apollo Go.
Rides are free but require a physical ticket, which the Islands District Office began distributing on Oct. 16. The Transport Department paper allowed for up to 540 tickets, each good for one ride for as many as two people, according to TSN, which reviewed the paper. Riders must be at least 8 years old or 1.35 meters tall, because the cars have no child seats, and the vehicles have no fittings for wheelchair users. Tickets are not available to companies, organizations or the media, and resale is banned.
Islands District councillors rode the route on Tuesday. The Islands District Officer, who joined them, described the ride as natural and comfortable and said demand from residents had been strong, with only a small number of tickets left, Unwire reported.
Apollo Go was the first company to receive a pilot license for autonomous vehicles in Hong Kong, in November 2024, and its cars have driven more than 280,000 kilometers in the city, DotDotNews reported. In February the Transport Department approved extending its testing from the airport island into Tung Chung and Sunny Bay, and at the end of July it allowed the company to add a remote backup operator, with a control center monitoring the cars in real time, while keeping a backup operator on board.
Neither Baidu nor the government has said whether the Tung Chung trial will lead to a regular commercial service, or announced routes, fares or a start date for one.