Plans for the introduction of autonomous trackless trams in the Tees Valley region of England are progressing with a pilot set to take place at Teesside Airport later this year. Tees Valley Combined Authority had previously agreed an autonomous public transport project as part of their \u00a31 billion transport plan in January 2024 and this is hoped to be the first step in achieving this ambition.<\/p>\n
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The overall project is planned to introduce 15 \u201ctrackless trams\u201d to five town centres in the Tees Valley using smart technology to move people around more quickly. Just where the exact routes would be \u2013 or even what the vehicles would be \u2013 has not yet been decided upon but its envisaged they would provide a circular hop-on, hop-off service in each of the town centres which would see their introduction.<\/p>\n
But before we get anywhere near the full project a pilot is set to be introduced at Teesside International Airport later in 2025, subject to approval by the Tees Valley Combined Authority cabinet.<\/p>\n
Ben Houchen, Tees Valley Mayor, commented: \u201cOur airport has been at the forefront of using the very latest technology available \u2013 from hydrogen tugs and new hydrogen fuel station to new scanners, and our new 5G testbed to boost trade.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, it makes complete sense to use our airport as a pilot zone, learn from it and ensure we are perfectly primed to roll this out across Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool<\/p>\n
\u201cWe still need clarity from the Government on future funding to get this project fully running across our region \u2013 but we\u2019re not standing still, and we\u2019re determined to see this cutting-edge technology moving around our airport before the year is out.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pilot would transport both freight and people around the Airport. \u00a32 million of funding would be needed to create this pilot hub which would include the purchase of vehicles and their operation.<\/p>\n
The question is when does a trackless tram become a bus?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Plans for the introduction of autonomous trackless trams in the Tees Valley region of England are progressing with a pilot set to take place at Teesside Airport later this year. Tees Valley Combined Authority had previously agreed an autonomous public … Continue reading