Yandex and the Ministry of Economic Development intend to launch the first unmanned taxis in Moscow. The program will be launched in pilot mode on the territory of the Yasenevo district, the Skolkovo innovation complex, the Tatarstan city of Innopolis and the Sirius educational center in Krasnodar.
The Government of Russia approved the resolution "On the Establishment of an Experimental Legal Regime (EPR) in the Field of Digital Innovation and Approval of the Program of the Experimental Legal Regime in the Field of Digital Innovation for the Operation of Highly Automated Vehicles". After 20 days after signing the document, it will be possible to use unmanned vehicles in driverless mode and with a test driver who will take the front seat of the car.
The second option will be used on the streets of Moscow and in Sirius, while the first one will appear in Skolkovo. Both options will be presented in Innopolis. In driverless mode, it is possible to contact the operator for remote support.
An unmanned taxi in the capital will be available in the triangle between the Yasenevo, Novoyasenevskaya and Bitsevsky Park stations. The cost of the trip will not differ from a regular taxi, and you can call it traditionally through the Yandex.Go application.
By 2025, pilotless taxis will become part of the Moscow infrastructure if the trial period is successfully completed. The provision of the decree on the experimental legal regime will allow integrating the solutions of Russian developers into the program, says Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko. He and the Ministry of Economic Development note that in the current situation it is important to help businesses and introduce innovations.
The company began testing prototypes of unmanned vehicles in 2017, and in 2020 this area was separated into Yandex Self-Driving Group. Yandex announced tests in the Yasenevo area in September 2021, but the company was waiting for permission from the authorities. Former Yandex CEO Tigran Khudaverdyan explained that the launch of the unmanned taxi was postponed in order to ensure its safety.
In January, information appeared that the government intends to allow Yandex to launch an unmanned taxi on 18 streets of Moscow and in the Sirius educational center in February of this year.
Last November, Yandex announced that it was using its own developed distance-measuring technology in the company's self-driving vehicles. Yandex has been designing its lidars since 2019.
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