Authorities in Shanghai have started issuing licenses for driverless taxis, launching a trial of a robotic ride-hailing service that can be booked from dedicated apps, state media reported.
Ride-sharing platforms were given the green light for the robotaxi service on Monday, with pilot license plates issued for 624 AI-powered vehicles in Shanghai's Jiading district, the Shanghai Daily newspaper reported.
The rapid rollout of robotaxis has sparked fears among professional drivers over the loss of even gig economy jobs in a time of economic hardship.
The cars use both sensors and remote control to navigate more than 1,000 kilometers (620 milies) of specially equipped roads through the city, and can be booked via apps, including Dazhong, Jinjiang and Xiangdao Chuxing, the paper said.
Shanghai's Pudong New Area has also started handing out licenses to mark the sixth World Artificial Intelligence Conference in the city, the state-backed China Daily newspaper reported, adding that Baidu's Apollo Go, AutoX and Pony.ai were among the first to obtain permits from the Pudong government for testing driverless vehicles.
During the trial phase in Shanghai, all rides are being offered free of charge, the Global Times reported.
Similar moves are already underway in Beijing and the central city of Wuhan, the paper reported, citing comments from Pony.ai, an autonomous driving startup.
While robotaxis have been seen on a trial basis on the streets of both cities since 2021, new smart routes have been added connecting the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, Beijing Daxing International Airport and the Beijing South Railway Station, and more routes are in the pipeline, the paper quoted the company as saying.
In Wuhan, the first batch of driverless taxis is now running 24 hours a day, offering cheaper fares to users compared with driver-operated vehicles.
On Baidu's Apollo Go app, rides cost 4-16 yuan (US$0.55-2.20) per 10-kilometer (6-mile) trip, compared with 18-30 yuan for driver-operated cars, according to the Huxiu news client.
The app is booming, while Wuhan's human drivers are scrambling to land fares, the report said.
Wuhan resident and former taxi driver Xu Ning said driverless taxis are still only allowed to operate on the outskirts of the city, not yet in the downtown area.
"They're running out in the East and West Lake districts, Huangpi, Jiangxia and Hongshan, places like that," Xu said. "A lot of young people like using them because they're cheap, and you can just get a ride by scanning a code."
But there have been some technical hitches, Xu said.
"But some people have found that the door won't open to let them out, and they've had to call Apollo Go for help," Xu said. "They've been having some software issues, where the doors aren't unlocking."
Xu said it wasn't a good time to be bringing such services online.
"There are so many people who can't find work, and now they're inventing driverless cars," Xu said. "These people have vested interests and only care about money, not the lives of ordinary people."
A resident of Shanghai who gave only the surname Jiang for fear of reprisals called on the government to take steps to support drivers who will inevitably be made redundant by driverless vehicles.
"The emergence of driverless cars means that traditional drivers have no long-term future," he said. "They're only thinking about how to make money, but not so much about the livelihood of ordinary people."
Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Roseanne Gerin.