Beep, Inc., a provider of autonomous shared mobility solutions, today announced the public launch of C.A.B. or Campus Autonomous Bus, at Mississippi State University (MSU), marking Mississippi and Southeastern Conference's (SEC) first-ever autonomous pilot program.
Celebrated on Sept. 20 at a ribbon cutting ceremony on MSU's campus, the pilot completed weeks of continued testing and validation and is now available to all students, faculty and guests of MSU for transit. C.A.B. is currently scheduled to operate through the end of the year and will give MSU a chance to evaluate how autonomous transportation systems can be used on campus to diversify its existing fleet of transportation assets. MSU is also researching how electric and shared autonomous mobility can be used in rural-urban environments.
The C.A.B. pilot program consists of two electric autonomous Beep shuttles, with one operating at a time along a 2.4-mile route that includes five different stops at key destinations. The C.A.B. is scheduled to operate daily from 12:00 to 8:00 p.m. pending environmental impacts and throughout the project, MSU will be collecting input from riders about the quality of the service, routes, ridership stats and other data points.
The two Beep shuttles can carry 10 seated and secured passengers, plus an onboard attendant who provides passengers with information about the pilot program and assists with passenger safety. All shuttles are ADA-compliant and feature a manually deployable ramp which is operated by the attendant. While in operation, the shuttles are monitored by the Beep Command Center at its headquarters in Lake Nona of Orlando, Florida.
