First glimpse of one of the driverless shuttle buses you'll be able to use in Milton Keynes from next month - and it won't cost you a penny

This week saw the advanced mapping work begin for the buses, to programme them and make them familiar with every inch of their routes.

It forms a vital part of the Street Connected and Autonomous Vehicles project, a trial led by Milton Keynes City Council and Smart City Consultancy with other partners.

Hopefully the buses will be ready to fully launch in February, when each fully-accessible autonomous vehicle will carry up to eight passengers around the city centre with multiple pick up and drop off points.

The first mapping is being carried out today between Unity Place and Midsummer Place and other routes will follow.

All the vehicles are supplied by Ohmio who have set up their UK HQ in MK. They have been specially designed to operate in city centre environments at low speeds of under 15mph.

Each shuttle will be connected to a new city centre control room where they will be supervised and managed remotely. For the initial operation, each bus will have a fully trained safety operator on board ready to take control if needed.

The project has created around 15 high tech jobs in MK, and recruited a number of recent local graduates from Cranfield University.

If the Milton Keynes trial is successful, it could be used as a blueprint for shuttles in other parts of the country, says the council.

Cabinet Member for Economy, Sustainability, and Innovation, Cllr Shanika Mahendran, said: “We’re committed to exploring innovative transport solutions that benefit residents and visitors, while also creating food for thought for sustainable cities around the world. It’s really encouraging that we’ve managed to bring industry-leading partners together on this exciting project. I look forward to hearing about people’s experiences when they try the vehicles out.”

Ohmio’s UK Director Ian Pulford told the Citizen: “This is an exciting step for Ohmio and Milton Keynes. The mapping task will establish the routes the shuttles will take and ensure they operate safely within a designated route - it will be like creating virtual tracks.”