Friday, July 18, 2025

Singapore is leading another transport innovation in Southeast Asia as Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) welcomes the region’s first completed driverless autonomous Robobus. This monumental achievement for driverless technology is brought to you by WeRide, the leading autonomous driving company, and the program was formally endorsed by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) of Singapore, taking public transport and smart tourism infrastructure to the next level.

The steering wheel and pedals have been removed from the driverless Robobus that is in service for the first time with no safety officer in the vehicle. This marks a regional first for an autonomous public transport system, where automation and unmanned daily urban operations come together at one of Singapore’s key tourist spots.

Public deployment was authorized after over a year of testing and intensive safety screening. Quietly unheralded, the Robobus has been ferrying tens of thousands of visitors around the RWS complex in its limited deployment since June 2024. Thousands of safe driverless journeys were taken on while under observation with no incidents being reported.

The project has been watched closely by government bodies such as the LTA since its pilot days. The acceptance of the fully driverless service is consistent with Singapore’s Smart Mobility 2030 blueprint, launched to drive the adoption of intelligent transport systems via innovation and infrastructure planning.

Fixed 12-Minute Loop Joins Key Tourist Attractions on the Island of Sentosa

Equarius Hotel

Hotel Michael

Hotel Ora

The Galleria

Running on an efficient 12-minute loop, the Robobus reduces the need for private cars in the integrated resort, creates a futuristic and eco-friendly way of getting out and about for guests. The car was previously tested on public roads without a safety officer but with a driver during on-road operations.

WeRide’s Robobus adopts WeRide’s leading technology of sensor fusion, including lidars, 360-degree cameras and a lot more as well as a precise computer operation system. The idea is to let the vehicle recognize and track obstacles out to at least 200 meters azimuth in 2π steradians about the vehicle.

This complex system enables the vehicle to respond immediately to road obstacles, thus guaranteeing passenger safety and functionality. The LTA and other industry partners have been actively testing safety validation to ensure all specifications satisfy both local and international requirements for driverless transport.

Robobus halfway through roll-out ROBODown Under The Robobus’ roll-out is just another push in Singapore’s much more ambitious plans to integrate AVs. In June 2025, Minister on secondment Jeffrey Siow declared that By the end of 2025, fully autonomous public transport services will form a core part of Singapore’s transport system.

It said that services such as WeRide’s Robobus would offer significant mobility value in urban and semi-urban areas, particularly in tourism precincts like Sentosa. The Ministry of Transport and Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) have recognised AV as important towards easing traffic congestion and enhancing first and last mile connectivity.”

Consistent with this aspiration, WeRide has set up a Research and Development center in Singapore, supported by the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB). This centre will specialise in adapting AVs for Singapore’s unique operating conditions, particularly in the areas of data security, sensor fusion, and localisation and context recognition through real-time dense mapping, semantic AI enabled navigation and local path planning.

The EDB’s backing further demonstrates singapore’s continued commitment to becoming a global center for smart mobility and transportation technology. It also leads to opportunities for foreign collaboration, local tech skills training, and further export of AV solutions to other ASEAN countries.

To Resorts World Sentosa, the autonomous Robobus could be offered as a special attraction to stand out in the tourism competitive industry. The AV offering adds to the guest experience, which is designed for tourists from abroad looking for high-tech services and earth-friendly transportation.

What’s more, the Robobus aligns with Singapore’s Green Plan 2030 since electric autonomous vehicles lead to lower emissions and noise levels in tourist areas. These kind of innovations are anticipated to form the backbone of Sentosa’s long term master planning as they work to evolve towards becoming a sustainable tourist destination.

Going forward, the positive experience of the Robobus at RWS is set to be a testbed for the integration of AV in other areas of the Republic. LTA and MoT are exploring options to extend similar initiatives to business districts, residential areas and other busy areas.

Other trials are already in progress in other parts of Singapore to test other types of AV formats, like self-driving taxis and logistics vans, that get government support. These tests are part of the Autonomous Vehicle Test Centre (AVTC) program conducted by the Centre of Excellence for Testing & Research of Autonomous Vehicles (CETRAN).

With this milestone at RWS, Singapore reinforces its position as a leader in intelligent transport solutions. The fully driverless Robobus is much more than simply a technical triumph — it heralds a move towards more accessible, sustainable and safe urban travel.