SINGAPORE — Four months after it began trials ferrying commuters at the National University of Singapore (NUS), ComfortDelGro’s self-driving shuttle bus is now able to travel to pick-up points on demand.

It can also detect and skirt around obstacles as it travels along a route, as the shuttle is equipped with sensors.

But riders at NUS may have to wait for a while to use the on-demand feature. Mr Goh Pin Kai, ComfortDelGro’s vice-president for future systems and technology, said there are no plans to allow students to use the service via an on-demand mobile application yet.

ComfortDelGro showcased the two improvements to the EZ10 autonomous shuttle on Tuesday (Oct 22) to delegates of the Intelligent Transport Systems World Congress, which runs until Friday at the Suntec Singapore Convention and Exhibition Centre.

Demonstrations for members of the public will be held at the Float@Marina Bay on Thursday (9am to 11.45am) and Friday (10.30am to noon).

The feature that allows the autonomous shuttle to detect objects and avoid them using sensors and software technology is only being showcased during the congress, said a spokesperson from EasyMile, a French start-up which develops software for the autonomous shuttle.

This feature has not been activated at NUS due to safety concerns as the roads in NUS are narrow and involve two-way traffic, the spokesperson added.

“It is being showcased now in the congress as we wanted to show more of the capabilities of the shuttle rather than just the normal joy ride which has been done previously.”

On July 30, transport operator ComfortDelGro, together with NUS and EasyMile, began passenger trials on the shuttle in a year long trial at NUS’ Kent Ridge Campus. The vehicle was funded and imported by Inchcape Singapore.

It has since made close to 480 trips and ferried about 430 passengers, said ComfortDelGro.

After Oct 25, the shuttle will return to plying routes at NUS till July next year to determine the commercial viability of such a service.

At NUS, the 12-seater shuttle plies a 1.6km route between Heng Mui Keng Terrace and Business Link. It operates at 20-minute intervals on weekdays between 10.20am and 11.20am, and from 2.20pm to 3.20pm.

Apart from the NUS trial, ComfortDelGro — through its subsidiary, SBS Transit — is also participating in two ongoing trials at Sentosa and Jurong Island.

Separately, in March, the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and Volvo Buses have teamed up to test a full-sized, driverless electric bus which can accommodate up to 80 passengers.