Baidu has debuted its Apollo Robotaxi in Changsha, Hunan province in China, with the first batch of 45 self-driving taxis having officially begun trial operations on urban roads.

Apollo Robotaxi deploys L4 Hongqi EV vehicles, which were developed in collaboration with FAW Group, a Chinese carmaker. 

“The robotaxi trial operations in Changsha demonstrate that the Apollo Robotaxi is progressing from research and development to a market reality, which will serve to provide rich feedback from real-world scenarios. Throughout the entire process, we have been and will always be committed to safety first and foremost,” says Zhenyu Li, Vice President of Baidu and General Manager of its Intelligent Driving Group.

“Intelligent driving is a great journey, and today marks a solid step forward. We will continue to work together with our partners with the aim of bringing a safer, more comfortable and more efficient autonomous driving experience to all.”

The general public in Changsha is now free to test ride hailing. According to Baidu, the vehicles will be able to perform a variety of intelligent self-driving functions, including changing lanes based on road and traffic conditions, assessing the movement of nearby vehicles and employing automatic avoidance when encountering aggressive overtaking by other vehicles.

To ensure safe operations, a human operator is assigned to each robotaxi to take control of the vehicle in situations that could affect the safety of passengers or the vehicle itself.

Apollo Robotaxi will offer passenger rides in a pilot zone in Changsha that covers a total area of 70 kilometers squared, and 135 kilometer-long open roads, which makes it the largest in China with the most extensive coverage of complex road conditions and the most advanced vehicle-infrastructure cooperative systems.

Within the pilot zone, the trial operation will cover around 50 kilometers by the end of the year. During the first half of 2020, Apollo Robotaxi is expected to cover the entire 135 kilometer stretch open to autonomous driving.

Baidu and FAW have been working together to advance the acceleration of the robotaxi. The Hongqi EV fleet, which was developed in collaboration with FAW Hongqi, represents China’s first volume production of preinstalled L4 autonomous driving vehicles.

The latest product of Apollo's autonomous driving technology, Hongqi EV is the result of a “synergy of leading software and hardware capabilities, preinstallation production capacity, fluid human-vehicle interface, a safety guarantee and the multifaceted upgrade and optimization of fleet management via the cloud,” according to Baidu.

The L4 Hongqi EV is equipped with a factory-installed customized Apollo OBU (On-Board Unit), allowing it to conduct L4 V2X communication with intelligent roadside equipment and achieve a seamless interplay between vehicle and infrastructure.

Baidu and FAW Hongqi have collaborated to redesign the installation scheme of the autonomous driving unit for the robotaxi, as well as the electrical/electronic architecture of the entire vehicle. The companies can now integrate the two sections during factory installation, which will address a variety of issues such as signal interference and detachment caused by modification and dismounting.