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The UK’s first autonomous Robbus will launch in live tests over the next two weeks.

Bus company Stagecoach has partnered with Transport Scotland to test the country’s first full-size autonomous bus in a real-world setting.

Unfortunately, the bus will not be double-decker. Instead, five double-decker buses will operate on a 14-mile route around Fife and Edinburgh.

Buses use smart sensor technology that allows vehicles to travel on certain roads without the driver having to take control.

The bus will carry up to 36 people at a time, or up to 10,000 per week.

Stagecoach will deploy five autonomous buses on roads in Eastern Scotland (Image: PA) Read More Related Articles Read More Related Articles

Fortunately, the buses will not be left entirely to their fate. They will have a “safety driver” to watch the road and both hands on the wheel.

Buses will also have a ‘bus captain’ walking around the bus asking passengers for feedback on self-driving services.

Sam Greer, Regional Director for Stagecoach in Scotland, said: “This is a very exciting project for Scotland and we are excited to start testing live on the road today.

“This is a huge step forward in our journey to fully launch the UK’s first full-size autonomous bus service and will bring easy access to new bus routes in the heart of the east of Scotland.”

Luckily there will be a human in the driver’s seat, not an actual robot (like TEDD on Call of Duty) (Image: Fandom.com) Read more related articles

The test comes after Tesla CEO Elon Musk promised that robot taxis will dominate the future of transportation.

At the launch of the company’s new Texas Gigafactory in early April, Musk said the company would produce autonomous taxis on a “large” scale.

He said: “What I can say is that we will be moving on a truly massive scale, a scale that has never been achieved by any company in the history of mankind.

“It has to happen for the world to turn to sustainable energy. On a large scale, fully autonomous driving, there will be a special Robotaxi that will look quite futuristic.”

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