UK's first autonomous bus set for Oxfordshire Roads

The UK’s first fully electric, full-size single decker autonomous bus service is now operating between Didcot Parkway train station and Milton Park.

This free service marks the final phase of the Mi-Link autonomous bus trial, operated by First Bus with vehicles provided by Switch Mobility.

These autonomous vehicles were converted from manual operation to autonomous operation by Fusion Processing, a firm specialising in self-driving vehicles.

The 28-seater bus will run every 30 minutes from 7am-6.30pm Monday to Saturday until the trial’s conclusion on Saturday 30 September.

Veronica Reynolds, Sustainability and Community Manager at Milton Park, said: “This final phase is the last chance for people to experience the future of autonomous zero-emissions travel as part of the Mi-Link trial.

“The feedback received to date - from the Park’s occupiers, visitors and local residents – has been invaluable in advancing the sector’s knowledge of sustainable, autonomous transport. We’d like to extend a big thank you to everyone who has participated in the trial so far.”

“Milton Park is privileged to be home to so many innovative occupiers, so it’s fitting the Park has been chosen as a living lab for this landmark trial – the first time autonomous technology has been used to deliver a fully electric public bus service in the UK.”

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So far trials have been successful, with two successful phases using a 15-seat minibus earlier this year covering a sample size of over 1,000 passengers.

The second phase of the trial ran for seven weeks across June and July, completing over 500 journeys and clocking more than 3,000 miles.

Together, the trips saved nearly 1.5 metric tonnes of CO₂ when compared to a diesel-engined bus – the equivalent emissions of a typical household’s average energy consumption over three months.

John Birtwistle, Head of Policy at First Bus, said: “We’re leading the way in bringing a revolutionary bus travel experience to more people and delivering this with an innovative and green approach to the future of public transport.”

“The next phase in this ground-breaking bus service gives us the opportunity to show more customers the exciting possibilities afforded by combining zero emission and digital autonomous technology to provide a smarter, cleaner and quieter way to travel.”

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