Emirates Driving Company (EDC), the UAE capital’s leading road safety and driving training company, after the success of the first-of-its-kind Mobility Education Summit in November 2022 in partnership with Abu Dhabi Police’s Vehicles and Drivers Licensing Directorate and the Department of Municipalities and Transport’s Integrated Transport Centre (ITC), is thrilled to announce the start of testing of one of the world’s most progressive, safe and advanced autonomous vehicle systems to Abu Dhabi.
Further emphasizing EDC’s continued investment in smart mobility technologies, the collaboration was formally unveiled at the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2022 and 2023.
EDC launched, in partnership with Auve Tech, the Estonian- leading autonomous transport developer, the first test of Auve Tech’s autonomous vehicles in the Middle East, and is confident that this new smart vehicles system will significantly strengthen and improve Abu Dhabi’s mobility sector.
Combining cutting-edge European autonomous driving systems with unparalleled safety standards and sustainable advanced technologies, Auve Tech’s revolutionary MiCa self-driving buses can be powered with electricity or hydrogen – taking safety, practicality and self-driving to the next level; autonomous buses are suitable for all weather and traffic conditions.
Accessible for People of Determination, fitted with powerful air conditioning, and providing seats for up to eight people, EDC will have trails for the buses at its extensive and fully equipped training facility to build a technical case study for testing and enabling smart mobility in Abu Dhabi with the partnership of ITC and other strategic partners.
The partnership with Connected and Autonomous Vehicle (CAV) tech companies is to implement them first in the distribution of customers in the specialized training areas from the main building that will bring to EDC a new mile of customer services by deploying the latest technologies in the field of mobility.
Able to operate for up to 9 hours at a time and at current speeds of 25 km/h electronically, the MiCa shuttle bus harnesses the powers of seven LiDAR sensors and ten cameras to provide 360-degree visibility.
Already utilized in 13 different countries across the globe, the new partnership symbolizes EDC’s growing focus on smart mobility systems and its commitment to making Abu Dhabi a smarter, safer and more sustainable city.
On the topic of smart mobility and partnerships, the Republic of Estonia Ambassador in the UAE, H.E Mr Jaan Reinhold, commented, “Smart mobility is undoubtedly an area where Estonia wants to introduce its solutions to UAE partners. Since Dubai will soon host COP28 and ITS World Congress, we are keen to get involved. Auvetech’s partnership with EDC has a great perspective in this regard.”
Khalid Al Shemeili, CEO of EDC, says, “Our partnership with Auve Tech is a massive step towards our mission of creating safer roads across Abu Dhabi. Autonomous buses offer a significantly safer method of driving, and the fact that they are powered by electricity and hydrogen vastly reduces their contribution towards climate change. We will test these buses to ensure their adequacy with the hot summer weather in the UAE.”
“Smart mobility systems remain at the core of our overarching strategies, and we are incredibly excited to use the new mobility system enabled by the technology.”
Taavi Rõivas, AUVE TECH chairman, stated, “UAE is the 14th country for AuveTech to operate autonomous vehicles and definitely among the most promising. Here, innovation and sustainability are not just words but a vision. We are honoured to have a strong partner in EDC to introduce safe autonomous rides to UAE, we have already launched our new generation of CAVs, and we will be working to develop our technology with the support of our partners.”
The MiCa bus, presented by EDC in partnership with Auve Tech, was officially launched in Abu Dhabi on January 25, 2023.