Leuven pilot project with autonomous De Lijn buses faces delays

The Flemish public transport company De Lijn has long planned to deploy self-driving buses, but the plans just don’t seem to be getting off the ground. For example, a pilot project was underway in Leuven.

However, the tendering procedure for the framework contract appears to have been put on hold. The ambition to have an operational connection by 2026 seems to be in jeopardy.

Still major technological challenges

In 2015, De Lijn already experimented with self-driving buses for the first time. However, the various initiated projects on autonomous transport, including one at Brussels Airport, were all put on hold because, according to De Lijn, the technology was not yet ready.

Although autonomous buses, often shuttle buses, are already on the road in several European cities, including Lyon, Barcelona, Malaga, and Aalborg, most autonomous bus services are indeed still in the test or pilot phase and operate on a limited scale.

Last year, however, De Lijn pulled the plans out of the fridge again, this time with a pilot project in Leuven to have an operational connection by 2026. But the plans are not running quite smoothly after all. Recent developments show that the technology still faces significant challenges.

Leuven remains a test site

“The initial response from suppliers did not fully meet the administrative-legal expectations, and on top of that, new, strong players are entering the European market,” says CD&V MP An Christiaens, who questioned Flemish Minister of Mobility Annick De Ridder (N-VA) about it.

The tendering procedure for the framework contract has been put on hold, making the original timing uncertain. Although Leuven will be retained as a test site, the exact timing of the operational deployment of self-driving De Lijn buses is unclear for now.

According to Christiaens, while it is good that De Lijn continues to focus on innovative mobility solutions, that technology must also be used cautiously. “Self-driving buses can play an important role in tomorrow’s mobility, but road safety and the efficient use of taxpayers’ money must always take priority,” Christiaens says.