UNE students have already renamed EZ10 (Armidale’s autonomous vehicle). Being developed at the university it has obviously become just another piece of the furniture because it was called “The Toaster” in true student fashion.
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Not surprisingly, none of the officials representing any of the vehicle’s development project partners called it that on Monday morning, when its trials were launched outside Booloominbah at UNE.
It fits in very nicely with the smart city.
- Simon Murray
Armidale Regional Council Mayor Simon Murray expressed his excitement for the times ahead as the technology developed to provide access for people after hours.
“Access for people maybe to run to the hospital, for university students to get up there to do their lectures, maybe that sort of thing,” he said.
“I’m looking forward to it. Armidale has been leading in the technology area, we’ve got the university and the TAFE here, so this to me is just another cornerstone in it.
“It will be an asset when it starts to run from the university to town and back. It will be interesting to see how it handles the traffic.”
Cr Murray joked that the ducks might have to stop expecting traffic to give way to them.
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Armidale Regional Council chair of the Traffic Advisory Committee Libby Martin said the committee had had briefings on the autonomous vehicle and thought it was really good to see it out and working.
This is a great initiative and I think the councillors are all very supportive of it.
- Cr Libby Martin
“We’re only one of two regional places that got one to trial, so I think it’s something new, something different with more initiative that looks further in to the future,” she said.
“This will have a trial run around the university to start with. Then it will have a run to town and then around the town as well, but I haven’t seen the route yet.”
Member for Northern Tablelands Adam Marshall said the technology had been around for a little while and developed overseas.
I really encourage people to jump on board.
- Adam Marshall
“It hasn’t been applied in Australia in a public transport setting in live traffic,” he said.
“It is very safe and very exciting, and a huge coup, I think, for Armidale to be trialling this technology along with Coffs Harbour, because if it is successful we could see these sorts of shuttles in other places like Tamworth, Gunnedah and Inverell.”
The trial will run for 12 months in four month stages. The first will be restricted to the UNE campus where people will be able to get on and off as they please. The second stage will see the shuttle travel into the city and back to the campus. The final stage with see the shuttle essentially travel the town bus route.