Chinese autonomous driving technology company WeRide is deploying its Robobus autonomous shuttle service at Zurich Airport.

Working with Flughafen Zürich and Swiss Transit Lab, this brings autonomous mobility to a major European aviation hub and builds on WeRide’s European operations, including its recent autonomous shuttle service at Roland-Garros during the 2024 French Open tennis tournament.

The Robobus, which accommodates nine passengers, will be the first commercial autonomous bus shuttle project at a European airport. It will serve airport employees along a dedicated route connecting the employee entrance at gate 101 to the maintenance area at gate 130. Service will begin in the first quarter of this year.

Flughafen Zürich is working with airports in Brussels and Amsterdam that are also testing technologies for autonomous vehicles. Before the start of test Robobus operations, WeRide’s autonomous taxi, Robotaxi, completed route mapping at Zurich Airport, demonstrating that the Robotaxi could have more applications in Switzerland.

At the foot of the Alps, Zurich Airport presents severe challenges to autonomous driving technology due to complex operational environment and climatic conditions. WeRide overcame these difficulties with its technical capabilities and implementation experience.

The Zurich Airport service follows a deployment in Paris, where Robobus provided shuttle services on a five-kilometre route during the French Open, as part of an ongoing collaboration with Renault to promote low-carbon public transportation.

The Robobus deployment leverages WeRide’s autonomous driving technology, which has undergone testing and validation across more than 30 cities in seven countries. The initial phase at Zurich Airport includes a safety driver on board, with plans to transition to remote monitoring operations.

“WeRide possesses a fully developed and thoroughly tested technology, meets all of the legal and safety requirements in place at Zurich Airport and guarantees that it will meet the data protection requirements set out,” Flughafen Zürich (www.flughafen-zuerich.ch) said in a statement.

The company will work with Swiss Transit Lab (www.swisstransitlab.ch) to ensure smooth operation of the service.

For more information, visit www.weride.ai.