An international consortium announced today the start of discussion for an autonomous shuttle bus service with NParks.

The consortium includes: WILLERS Pte. Ltd, the Singapore subsidiary of Japan’s leading intercity bus travel company; Car Club, Singapore’s largest car sharing operator; ST Engineering; and NParks.

NParks and WILLERS, ST Engineering and Car Club aim to start operation from mid June. A 15 passenger Navya ARMA autonomous shuttle bus will provide visitors with an on-demand, hop on hop off service, accessible using a mobile application that will also provide a ‘one stop’ channel for services and amenities in the park.

The service will be provided for free for a six month trial period ahead of launching a commercial service model.

WILLERS will fund the shuttle bus and lead business model development with Car Club. ST Engineering will provide systems integration and technical support. NParks will provide the site and ground operations.

WILLERS’ Managing Director, Mr. Shigetaka Murase, said: “We are excited to team up with three strong partners to undertake this latest autonomous vehicle trial, using a mobile application for an on-demand autonomous vehicle shuttle services and ultimate launch of commercial business model”. We believe the experience gained from this trial will give us greater insight into how we can become an AV service operator in the years to come.”

The consortium expects the trial to reveal insights into the user experience and the potential for the future commercialisation of the service.

Car Club’s Managing Director, Mr. Gary Ong, said: “This could be a pivotal project for us. We believe car sharing complements other modes of transportation, and we look forward to using real customer feedback from this trial to understand how we can innovate and improve our service.”

The consortium will soon start preparation of safety checks and route planning, while developing an optimal commercial service model.

STELS
ST Engineering is a global technology, defence and engineering group specialising in the aerospace, electronics, land systems and marine sectors. The Group employs about 22,000 people across offices in Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Middle East, serving customers in the defence, government and commercial segments in more than 100 countries. With more than 500 smart city projects across 70 cities in its track record, the Group continues to help transform cities through its suite of Smart Mobility, Smart Security and Smart Environment solutions. Headquartered in Singapore, ST Engineering reported revenue of $6.7b in FY2018 and it ranks among the largest companies listed on the Singapore Exchange. It is a component stock of the FTSE Straits Times Index, MSCI Singapore, SGX ESG Transparency Index and SGX ESG Leaders Index.

WILLERS
WILLERS Pte. Ltd., Singapore subsidiary of WILLER, Inc., Japan invested in Car Club Pte. Ltd. WILLER GROUP aim to realize the mobility service “MaaS (Mobility as a Service)” that meets the needs of every customer. WILLERS aim for a platform that can provide “inspiration” in addition to allowing people all over the world to move more seamlessly by combining intercity buses, trains, planes, ferries, taxis, bicycles, and various transportation methods.
The first innovation that WILLER GROUP has made was in long distance travel by revolutionary intercity buses in Japan. These intercity buses have an easy and convenient reservation system on the web (ahead of the industry), bus seats tailored to the customer base, and stylish bus terminals, which introduced intercity buses to a new base of customers. They created a new intercity bus market with more than 2.6 million people, catering to both commuters and sightseeing tourists. Innovation in connectivity between large cities and local towns made significant impact in the market, and through the success of their bus operations, they further connected trains and ferry services as well. The next step for WILLERS is to revitalize public transportation around the world and to inspire global innovation. Now under their current portfolio, they cover train operators and are connected with 89 bus companies, 37 ferry operators and around 16,500 hotel facilities with local sightseeing activities through an aggregate platform.
https://willers.com.sg

Car Club
Car Club Pte Ltd, a subsidiary of Mitsui & Co. and invested by Willers, is the largest and most established car-sharing operator in Singapore since 1997. Using the latest telematics and mobile technology in our fleet of 230+ cars at 120+ Car-Sharing stations island-wide, we address diverse mobility needs of the urban population, dedicating our efforts in building a dependable and positive Car-Sharing experience for the community. Guided by our core objective – Mobility Choice as a Service (MCaaS), we provide high-quality and cost-efficient mobility options to individuals and businesses as a service, so they can conveniently and affordably access vehicles of their choice, anytime and anywhere, without the need to own one. Other than freeing them from the financial commitments of car-ownership, we also aim to work towards a car-lite initiative and a greener environment.
https://www.carclub.com.sg

NParks
NParks is responsible for providing and enhancing the greenery of Singapore, which the government calls a “City in a Garden”. Beyond building green infrastructure, NParks is actively engaging the community to enhance the quality of their living environment. NParks manages over 300 parks and 4 nature reserves. There is a hierarchy and diversity of parks, ranging from large regional parks to neighbourhood parks and playgrounds, where a spectrum of natural ecosystems co-exists with horticultural gardens. Adding to this is the extensive streetscape, or roadside greenery, that forms the backbone of the City in a Garden. An island-wide Park Connector Network is also being developed to link major parks, nature areas and residential estates.

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