Preliminary Safety Evaluation of Self-Driving, Low-Speed Shuttle

Although fully implemented autonomous vehicles (AVs) seem to be on the cusp of reality, standard evaluation and testing procedures still are lacking. This study conducted a preliminary evaluation of the technical feasibility, safety, and reliability of using AV technology, in particular a low-speed, self-driving shuttle known as Olli. The study designed a set of 12 testing scenarios and performed experiments to evaluate the operational capabilities, safety, and reliability of the self-driving shuttle on the University at Buffalo's Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs) proving grounds. The scenarios were designed to evaluate the vehicle's performance while simulating the operational scenarios that the shuttle would encounter when deployed in the real world at a medical and educational campus in downtown Buffalo, New York. Preliminary results provide insight into the operational characteristics of the self-driving shuttle; its stopping distance behavior, its ability to detect and safely react to obstacles, conflicts, and other hazards on the road; its car-following behavior, and the impact of inclement weather conditions on performance. (C) 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.