On August 24, Baidu Apollo was granted permission to carry out manned automated driving tests in Beijing, which can be experienced by ordinary users.
Since obtaining a license to conduct road manned testing of automated vehicles in Beijing in December 2019, Baidu Apollo's automated driving fleet has completed more than 519,000 kilometers of road tests in Beijing and can begin the next phase of manned application demonstrations open to the public.
Baidu has already launched the Beijing Autopilot Test Drive for the public on the official Apollo website, where regular users can submit applications.
Baidu Apollo will conduct manned demonstration operations on approximately 700 kilometers of autopilot test roads in multiple regions of Beijing, including Yizhuang, Haidian and Shunyi, to explore sustainable operation models for large-scale autopilot vehicles.
In December 2019, Baidu Apollo obtained the first batch of 40 manned test permits for automated driving vehicles on the road issued by the Beijing Autonomous Driving Test Management Joint Working Group.
Baidu has opened its Apollo Go automated taxi service in Cangzhou, Hebei province, making the city the first in China to use Robotaxi in the downtown area.
Baidu's driverless taxi Apollo Robotaxi used in downtown area for first time
This is also the second city where Apollo has gone live with a regular taxi service, following the full opening in Changsha in April this year.
It means that Apollo is accelerating its deployment and Baidu's unmanned vehicle service Apollo Go is entering a new phase of multi-location operation.