Project CAV Forth, led by Fusion Processing, will bring together organisations from across the UK to develop a high capacity Autonomous Bus Pilot Service across the Forth Bridge – a UNESCO World Heritage site. The project will convert five full-size Alexander Dennis single decker manually driven busses into autonomous vehicles. These self-driving buses will provide a service capable of carrying up to 42 passengers 14 miles across the Forth Bridge to Edinburgh Park Train and Tram interchange. With buses every 20 minutes this could provide an estimated 10,000 weekly journeys, and support the case for rolling out similar services across the UK.
We will support the company in this project by way of undertaking a work package of innovative attitudinal surveys with users and non-users of the autonomous buses in the project. It will include surveying participants who have actually experienced riding on full size autonomous buses on a scheduled service using the normal road network. It will provide a unique and in-depth insight into the public perceptions of such provision. Such information will be vital in assessing operational matters which most concern the travelling public and addressing issues which might affect public support for the introduction of such technology.The main objectives of this research are: To gain an in-depth understanding of the experience and perceptions of those members of the public who have travelled on full size autonomous service buses operating on a scheduled service on the public highway (as indicated earlier, many previous studies involved small shuttle buses). Methodologies employed will include both quantitative and qualitative techniques; Explore perceptions and attitudes of other drivers, cyclists and pedestrians faced with the introduction of full size autonomous service buses, driving on the existing road network, in their vicinity; Investigate how the attitudes of various demographic groups towards autonomous buses might differ (e.g. age, gender,education etc); To consider, using structured interviews, the experience and the role of on-board bus drivers/stewards, who sit in the driver's seat of autonomous buses