The City of Arlington is wrapping up a successful pilot program this month designed to explore on-demand driverless vehicle technology in a real-world environment.

Last October, Arlington became the first Texas city to offer an on-street driverless transportation option to the general public with partner Drive.ai. The company’s blue and orange vehicles operated Monday through Friday, picking up and dropping off passengers at fixed locations near Texas Live! and Globe Life Park, the Esports Stadium Arlington & Expo Center and CenterPoint Office Complex. The service, which will conclude on Friday, May 31, was free of charge to passengers.

Arlington, which was also the first city in the United States to offer off-street autonomous transportation to the general public through the 2017-2018 Milo shuttle pilot program, is proud to serve as a testing ground for this technology and will continue to explore cost-effective, safe and innovative transportation solutions.

Major car manufacturers such as General Motors continue to adjust to rapidly changing market conditions and customer preferences, investing in electric vehicles, autonomous vehicles and ride-sharing technology. General Motors, which has a manufacturing plant in Arlington, recently shifted away from some conventional vehicle manufacturing to refocus on developing next-generation vehicle technology.

Arlington, in turn, is prepared to be equally agile in the management of its infrastructure and technology investments that advance the future of mobility for people, goods and services. Smarter and more-efficient mobility solutions stand to increase access to jobs and educational opportunities, shrink transportation costs for families, increase the safety of our roads by reducing collisions and improve air quality by reducing vehicle emissions.

In Arlington, Drive.ai conducted 760 trips serving 1,419 passengers – logging more than 440 miles in autonomous mode – without incident between Aug. 22, 2018, and May 6, 2019. According to a survey of riders, 98 percent said they felt safe and 91 percent said they thought their ride was smooth.

In addition to testing autonomous transportation solutions, Arlington is also investing in connected traffic signal technology that aims to make city streets safer and more efficient by being able to share real-time data with drivers.