Bringing future technologies to the present day and navigating the sector with pioneering attempts, Karsan continues to achieve firsts in global markets. Drawing attention with its innovations in the European electric public transport market, Karsan keeps moving to break ground in self-driving transportation. In this context, Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK started to count the days to hit the roads in Finland.
The people of Tampere shift to the comfort of self-driving transport
Karsan, which signed an agreement to supply autonomous vehicles to Norwegian Vy Group, one of the largest public transport authorities across the Nordic countries, delivered an 8-meter Autonomous e-ATAK for use in Tampere, Finland. Carrying passengers on a 5-kilometer route within Michigan State University, the USA, Autonomous e-ATAK has provided service for Stavanger, Norway, since 2022. Stating that Autonomous e-ATAK, Karsan’s driverless model will also be Finland’s first full-size driverless bus to carry passengers under real road conditions after Michigan State University and Stavanger, Karsan CEO Okan Baş said, “Karsan continues to achieve firsts in Scandinavian countries. In this regard, we have initiated the first autonomous vehicle project in Finland. Having carried over 25 thousand passengers in more than 1,5 years, Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK will now offer service in Tampere. We will continue to transform the world’s transport infrastructure, especially in Europe, through our electric and autonomous vehicles.”
Dr. Ali Peker, the CEO of ADASTEC, a US-based company located in East Lansing, MI, with which Karsan has collaborated for the Autonomous e-ATAK’s development, gave the following details regarding the subject: “As part of our solid cooperation with Karsan and Applied Autonomy, we thank REMOTED for allowing us to launch our project and believing in our vision. We’ve tackled adverse weather conditions before, and now, in Tampere, we’re ready to take on a new challenge with our bus. This bus will navigate a 5.8km route, stopping at 17 bus stops and crossing 20 pedestrian paths, showcasing our Level-4 automated driving ability to handle complex urban environments safely and efficiently. This step forward demonstrates our technology’s readiness for real-world application and our commitment to advancing public transport.”
We are to increase our share in the Scandinavian market
Pointing out the tenacity of Karsan to achieve firsts in every market with its planned sales strategies, Okan Baş stated, “We are enabling the city of Tampere to be one step forward in public transport solutions with the Autonomous e-ATAK, which we have delivered for use in Tampere, Finland, through the Norwegian Vy Group, one of the largest public transport authorities across the Scandinavian countries. As a top solution partner for solving issues regarding public transport in the Scandinavian markets, we will keep this position through our autonomous and electric vehicles.”
Beyond Human Limits in Transit
Capable of moving on a planned route on its own, the Autonomous e-ATAK with Level-4 autonomous technology can perform autonomous driving at a speed of 40 km/h under all weather conditions, day or night. Autonomous e-ATAK, which carries out all operations like a driver, such as approaching the bus stops on the route, managing the processes of getting off and on, and providing guidance and management at intersections, crossings, and traffic lights, will start to serve in Tampere, Finland with its features navigating the future public transport.