Spanish city makes major change by launching driverless buses seen in US and China

A popular Spanish city is trialling self-driving buses, like those seen in the US and in China.

A prototype of a self-driving minibus by Renault Group and WeRide is being tested in Barcelona. This is the first time an autonomous public bus is being tested in Catalonia and Spain, and it was first seen in Catalan capital during the Mobile World Congress.

Similar self-driving cars have hit the roads in other cities, such as San Francisco, Los Angeles and Wuhan, in China.

The bus fits eight passengers and has a four-stop route, which is two kilometres long and takes 20 to 30 minutes to complete. The stops include the bottom of the Rambla de Catalunya boulevard and Gran Vía de les Corts Catalanes towards the Diagonal Avenue, to Passeig de Gràcia - passing iconic modernist buildings such as Casa Battló and La Pedrera by Antoni Gaudí.

Inside, the bus has three screens: one that shows the route, another that tracks the traffic with AI, and a third that records the streets it is navigating. Patrick Vergelas, the head of Autonomous Mobility Projects at Renault Group, commented that the streets of Barcelona were the “ideal” testing ground for a self-driving vehicle because of the different characteristics of the cityscape.

The director of International Business and Commercialisation of WeRide, Boxiang Li, also commented, sharing that "a lot [can be learnt] from Barcelona’s traffic scenarios", reports Catalan News.

"One of the biggest challenges of this demonstration is the huge interaction with pedestrians," added Vicente Milanés, the director of Open Innovation of Renault Group. He continyed that the number of interactions on Passeig de Gràcia and Rambla de Catalunya are "amazing" and show that "the technology is mature".

In response to safety concerns, Mr. Milanés assured that the bus follows "all the regulations in terms of safety".

"We have more than 20 sensors, so 10 cameras, six radars, six ultrasounds to be sure that all the information is redundant and we are able to detect all the situations in the traffic," he added. The bus was initially introduced in Paris, France, in 2024, and is now open for the public to try for free until Friday.

The Renault Group explained that the Level L0 model, does not have any driving assistance and depends on a human driver. In comparison, a L5 is "fully autonomous, in all situations and without any onboard operators".

The model being tested in Barcelona is an L4 model, which is "capable of managing driving situations on their own". However, at times the L4 may require remote supervision and should be driven "within an operational defined domain", which is known as "mind off".

Renault added that autonomous busses will be "a game changer for public transport" and convey that modern technology is "ecological, agile and flexible".