Taking firm steps towards becoming a global brand with the vision of being “One Step Ahead in the Future of Mobility“, Karsan has added a new one to its worldwide firsts. Bringing together the residents of the city with autonomous public transportation technology with a vehicle test open to the public for 1 week in the Leganes region of Madrid, Karsan proved once again that this technology is not the technology of the future, but of today. Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK, the world’s first and only Level-4 autonomous bus carrying ticketed passengers in open traffic, successfully completed its tests in open traffic in Leganes, allowing hundreds of citizens to experience the mobility of the future in person, and received full marks from the city administration. The vehicle test, which attracted great attention from the press, was widely covered in the Spanish press.
The press conference, which was held with the participation of Jorge Luis Rodrigo, Regional Minister of Transport of the Community of Madrid, Luis Miguel Torres Hernández, Director General of Security, Civil Protection and Education of the Community of Madrid, Pablo Rodríguez Sardinero, Director of the Madrid Regional Transport Consortium, Miguel Ángel Recuenco, Mayor of Leganés, First Deputy Mayor of the Leganés City Council, Carlos Delgado Pulido, Almudena González Vergara, Councillor for Public Safety and Mobility, Leganés City Council, Ruiz Group President Gregorio Ruiz, Ruiz Group CEO Andrés Ruiz and Karsan Spain Consultant Ángel Luis Estrella, was met with great interest. This step, taken by the city government and industry leaders for a sustainable future and the approval of autonomous public transportation technology, had great repercussions in Spain as well as in the people of Leganes.
Great interest from the public in Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK
Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK was met with great interest during the week of experience drives. Leganés residents, who wanted to see and experience how a driverless vehicle works, showed high demand to get into the vehicle. While all the seats were filled quickly each time, the interest shown clearly demonstrated the curiosity and excitement for the innovative technology offered by Karsan. During the test process, which was offered free of charge, users were allowed to experience the safety, efficiency and comfort of Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK themselves. Equipped with advanced sensors and cameras, the bus ran smoothly along a predetermined route in Leganés, ensuring full integration into urban traffic.
Karsan directs the urban transportation of the future
Emphasizing that a very successful test drive was carried out under heavy rain on the 2.3 km open traffic route with Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK, the world’s first Level 4 Autonomous bus carrying ticketed passengers in open traffic, Karsan CEO Okan Baş said, “Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK, our first level-4 autonomous bus carrying ticketed passengers in open traffic in Norway and Finland, This great interest in one of the most important cities in Europe clearly demonstrates the curiosity and need of the city’s residents for this innovation in public transport. We will continue to shape the future by reinforcing our leadership in the sector in autonomous technology. We would also like to thank the visionary regional administration of Leganes for their contribution to the project and their example.“
This 100% electric and driverless model not only reduces the carbon footprint, but also offers an innovative alternative to make urban transportation more efficient, safe and accessible. With this successful demonstration, Karsan once again proved its commitment to the mobility of the future and further strengthened its position as one of the leaders in autonomous and sustainable transportation in Europe.
The first and only in the world with 35 thousand passenger experience
Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK, the world’s first Level 4 autonomous electric bus developed by Karsan together with its technology partner ADASTEC, broke new ground in the world by carrying passengers on a 5-kilometer route for 1.5 years on the Michigan State University campus in the USA. In Stavanger, Norway, Autonomous e-ATAK, which has been experiencing ticketed passengers in open traffic since 2022, has recently expanded its existing route by updating it with a route containing a tunnel and successfully passed another difficult test as the first autonomous vehicle to pass through the tunnel. Following the USA, Norway, France, Romania, Finland and Türkiye, Karsan plans to make deliveries to Switzerland, the Netherlands and Sweden in the first half of 2025. Thus, the autonomous e-ATAK continues to be the world’s first and only level-4 autonomous bus that carries passengers in open traffic with its 11 autonomous projects at 9 different points.
Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK is ready for continuous service
Equipped with the Advanced Sensor Package, Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK uses a combination of LiDAR, Radar, RGB Cameras, GNSS and state-of-the-art sensors that work together to provide precise navigation and situational awareness in different weather conditions. The vehicle, which can reach a speed of 40 km / h in autonomous driving in all weather conditions, day or night, is what a bus driver does; It performs all operations such as approaching the stops on the route, managing the processes of getting on and off, providing dispatch and management at intersections and crossings and traffic lights without a driver. With a length of 8.3 meters, Karsan Autonomous e-ATAK stands out as a sustainable and high-capacity transit solution that can efficiently meet urban transportation demands. The ability of the bus to be fully charged in 5 hours with AC units and 3 hours with DC units ensures that the vehicle is ready for continuous service.
