Peachtree Corners, Ga., is now home to a fleet of four shuttles which will run on a three-mile route with seven stops connecting restaurants, shops, hotels and the city’s Innovation Center at Curiosity Lab. The all-electric AV shuttle program is known as PAUL (Piloting Autonomous Use Locally), and will operate with Beep vehicles communicating across the city’s 5G-enabled vehicle-to-everything (V2X) infrastructure.
“This deployment not only allows for the continued development and deployment of safe, enjoyable and eco-friendly transportation options — but it also allows a true mobility-as-a-service pioneer like Beep to leverage our city-owned V2X infrastructure and vibrant ecosystem to help accelerate new technology development that further enhances safety and earns critical trust from the public,” said Brian Johnson, city manager of Peachtree Corners, in a statement.
The fleet will operate 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily, starting in the fall, and will include onboard safety operators.
Using the city’s 5G communications backbone, the shuttle system will be able to communicate with traffic control infrastructure, roadside units common with connected vehicle technology and other advancements.
Peachtree Corners has established itself as a nexus of smart city and next-gen transportation research and development.
The AV test track at the city-owned Curiosity Lab is home to a hive of activity and industry partners. OVHcloud recently announced a partnership with the lab to provide storage, computing and a cloud platform to support the numerous companies conducting testing and research at the facility.
“We’ve watched with interest as Peachtree Corners has established its position as the leader for autonomous mobility and smart city technologies testing,” said Jeffrey Gregor, general manager, OVHcloud US, in a statement. “We’re eager to provide the cloud platform to support companies and agencies who are developing the next generation smart city technology that will ultimately serve communities across the country and around the world.”
