Autonomous vehicles move closer to wider use in Hong Kong

The Transport Department had issued seven pilot licenses involving 63 autonomous vehicles for testing in Hong Kong as of June, with trials taking place at seven locations, including North Lantau, Kowloon East, West Kowloon and Cyberport.

Derek Chung Cheuk-ming, chief electrical and mechanical engineer for autonomous vehicles and bus technology at the department, said the total testing distance in Hong Kong had exceeded 240,000 kilometers, with the trials running generally smoothly.

He said the technology had reached Level 4, or highly automated driving, under international standards, showing that Hong Kong was making steady progress in promoting autonomous vehicles at a level comparable with overseas markets.

Among the license holders, Baidu Apollo International Limited has obtained three pilot licenses, allowing 50 of its passenger cars to be tested on designated road sections.

Iris Wong Man-hei, senior project and business development manager for intelligent driving at Baidu, said the company had localized its autonomous driving testing strategy for Hong Kong.

She said the vehicles had operated safely in complex road scenarios, including roundabouts, busy signalized junctions and give-way intersections, without causing traffic congestion.

Asked whether the tests would take place under Hong Kong’s frequent extreme weather conditions, Wong said all trials strictly followed the requirements set by the department.

During a media test ride on Baidu’s sixth-generation Apollo Go robotaxi on Monday, the vehicle drove on Airport Island in autonomous mode for about seven minutes. A backup operator remained on standby in the left-hand-drive driver’s seat.

Traffic was light during the test run. The vehicle slowed down and paused briefly before entering a roundabout. It also braked smoothly without operator intervention when another vehicle crossed in front of it.

The vehicle is equipped with passenger amenities, including touchscreen-controlled massage seats that can recline to 135 degrees.

On the timeline for a commercial launch of robotaxi services, Chung said the government had established the Autonomous Vehicle Applications Promotion Working Group.

Chaired by the Commissioner for Transport, the group will work with stakeholders to facilitate licensing arrangements for commercial autonomous vehicles and draw up a long-term development roadmap.

Safety concerns have been raised following a reported system glitch in Wuhan in March, when more than 100 Apollo Go robotaxis were said to have stopped in the middle of roads, leaving many passengers stranded.

Asked why Baidu had not publicly addressed the incident and how it would prevent a similar malfunction in Hong Kong, Wong declined to comment, saying she would not discuss other topics that day.

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