Riding in an autonomous vehicle with people you don't know can feel strange enough — even when there isn't a coronavirus to worry about.
Now a rider's biggest fear might not be whether the AV can safely guide them to a destination, but if the person sitting next to them coughs.
Here's how five AV companies are keeping backup drivers and riders safe.
Argo AI, which operates test fleets in six U.S. cities, says its efforts include "rigorous cleaning" and the installation of a barrier made of marine-grade vinyl between the left and right seating areas.
Argo's vehicles also have been upgraded with HEPA-certified cabin air filters and two five-stage air-recirculation devices that are strapped to the back of the front seats to help remove particulates from the air.
In developing its COVID-19 plan, Cruise says it consulted an epidemiologist as well as research from the World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Since Cruise's new robotaxi, called the Origin, is an electric vehicle purpose-built for autonomy and ride-sharing, the company spent the early part of 2020 rethinking what the interior would look like and how customers would handle the ride experience.
Cruise's solutions mimic Argo's, with improved filtration and "an elegant, clear barrier that would have felt extremely claustrophobic in a traditional car." The barrier "completely isolate[s] each person" and allows Cruise to still put two people from different households into the vehicle at one time. The company also will offer hand sanitizer and wipes and require masks in the vehicles.
May Mobility suspended its autonomous shuttle service for part of the year but came back in August with a long list of changes, including a partition between the safety driver and passengers, disinfectant fogging with Halosil International's Halo Disinfection System and using ultraviolet-C light from supplier GHSP.
GHSP's technology is branded grenlite, and it's meant to kill a number of pathogens, including viruses and bacteria. Rides are limited to a single person or a group from the same household.
Voyage says its G3 autonomous vehicle, a modified Chrysler Pacifica, was "designed for a COVID-19 world." Like Argo, Voyage uses HEPA-certified air filters. It also uses GHSP's grenlite ultraviolet-C light technology, which it says offers an "ambulance-grade solution" to keeping its vehicles clean.
Waymo requires face coverings for anyone who interacts with its vehicles. It says its robotaxis are cleaned and disinfected several times a day and have an HVAC system that regularly refreshes cabin air. A rider-support team conducts remote inspections of vehicles between rides to make sure they stay clean. Hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes are available for passengers, and there are clear plastic partitions separating the rear passenger section from the front seats.
Send us a letter
Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.
