The Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IIT-H) has launched fully autonomous electric buses on its campus, marking the country’s first real-world deployment of driverless public transport.
Developed by the institute’s Technology Innovation Hub on Autonomous Navigation (TiHAN), the buses come in two variants—a six-seater and a fourteen-seater—and have already transported over 10,000 passengers.
Equipped with Autonomous Emergency Braking and Adaptive Cruise Control, the vehicles have reached Technology Readiness Level 9, indicating full operational maturity. Passenger feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with a reported satisfaction rate of 90%.
The initiative is backed by India’s first autonomous driving testbed, also developed by TiHAN, which replicates Indian traffic conditions to validate self-driving technologies.
Professor P. Rajalakshmi, who leads the TiHAN initiative, emphasised that the project is not just a transport solution but a strategic step toward preparing India for autonomous mobility. The hub also offers AI and ML training programs to build a skilled workforce for future innovations.
While the buses currently operate within IIT-H’s campus, experts view this as a precursor to broader adoption of autonomous public transport across India, pending regulatory approvals and safety validations.
