Public Deployment of Autonomous Shuttles between NC A&T and Downtown
About the Project
Aggie Autonomous Shuttles will give rides to public, connecting the NCA&T campus and neighborhood to downtown Greensboro for a one-month pilot program. These two areas are about one mile apart, and a trip between A&T’s campus to downtown Greensboro takes about 8 minutes. The maximum speed of the vehicles is 25 mph.
There are two stops: one in front of the Harold L. Martin Sr. Engineering Research and Innovation Complex at N.C. A&T and the other is in front of the Greensboro Children Museum, giving riders access to the Greensboro Public Library, Greensboro History Museum, Greensboro Cultural Center, LeBauer Park, Governors Court, and downtown businesses and restaurants. Such an effective transportation solution can have a significant economic impact on N.C. A&T’s neighboring area, which is known to be a food desert, by connecting it to the downtown resources.
Aggie Auto Shuttles
Sponsored by NCDOT, FHWA, and DOT UTC program, Aggie Autonomous Shuttles are developed and deployed by NCA&T researchers to provide mobility services for connecting disconnected communities. These autonomous shuttles have been developed in order to provide better transportation choices in rural areas as well as connecting places that have little to no access to public transportation. These small shuttles are also economic solutions for areas with low transportation demand for which traditional mass transportation does not work.
These shuttles are a big step forward for North Carolina and make Greensboro one of the pioneer cities to try autonomous shuttles and make better self-driving technology and creative transportation solutions. These shuttles also demonstrate the capabilities of North Carolina A&T researchers as leaders in this exciting domain of autonomy and autonomous vehicles from surface transportation to air mobility.
