JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Transportation Authority unveiled a commemorative bus on Monday honoring the 250th anniversary of America’s independence at JTA’s Autonomous Innovation Center, or AIC.
In attendance was U.S. Department of Transportation Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology Seval Oz.
Oz credited Jacksonville for its courage in integrating autonomous vehicles into public transit while the rest of the nation is still talking about it.
“Innovation does require courage, it requires boldness, it requires perseverance, and it requires a sense of vision as to where we should be, as opposed to where we are,” Oz said. “Navi represents more than autonomous vehicle deployment — It represents proof that the autonomous public transportation can safely and successfully, with the public trust, operate as part of a real ongoing transit system serving customers throughout the region.”
This month marks the one-year anniversary of the Neighborhood Autonomous Vehicle Innovation Service, or NAVI. But some say its first year has been less than perfect.
On March 5 of this year, the Florida Department of Transportation saw a demonstration of the vehicles. Reports show that the demonstration required seven manual assists, challenging the idea that the system is truly autonomous.
They also found that NAVIs cannot pull back into traffic and often make hard stops due to misjudging field conditions like flags or pedestrians on the sidewalk.
Still, JTA CEO Nat Ford says our country is in the midst of a transformative period in public transportation.
“Every day that Navi is operating, it demonstrates that autonomous mobility is not a theoretical dream,” Ford said. “It’s actually operational, it’s practical, and is helping to write the next chapter in the evolution of transportation in the United States.”
We wanted to ask about Navi’s low ridership and high expenses, but neither JTA nor the feds were taking our questions today.
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