Las Vegas city councilman: Innovative vehicle has a futuristic cartoon feel

By COLTON LOCHHEAD LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

8 years ago

Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman steps out of an autonomous shuttle outside of the Container Park in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

Keolis North America CEO Clement Michel steps off of the ARMA autonomous shuttle at the Container Park in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

Keolis North America CEO Clement Michel, right, takes in a few of Fremont Street while riding an autonomous shuttle in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

Mayor Carolyn Goodman speaks about the ARMA autonomous shuttle in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

City of Las Vegas Communications Director David Riggleman, from left, Mayor Carolyn Goodman, Navya Vice President Henri Coron, and Keolis North America CEO Clement Michel listen as Councilman Ricki Barlow speaks about the ARMA autonomous shuttle, in the background, in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

An autonomous shuttle moves passengers, including Las Vegas City Councilman Bob Coffin, in hat, and Councilwoman Lois Tarkanian, right, along Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

A view of Fremont Street from the ARMA autonomous shuttle in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

Keolis North America CEO Clement Michel watches as the doors close on the ARMA autonomous shuttle in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

Mayor Carolyn Goodman is helped off of an autonomous shuttle by David Riggleman, communications director for the City of Las Vegas, outside of the Container Park in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

People look on at an autonomous shuttle, not pictured, outside of the Container Park in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

Las Vegas City Councilman Bob Coffin speaks about the ARMA autonomous shuttle in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

An autonomous shuttle moves passengers along Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

People gather around the ARMA autonomous shuttle in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

Passengers arrive at the Container Park via an autonomous shuttle in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

Mayor Carolyn Goodman speaks about the ARMA autonomous shuttle in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

People gather around the ARMA autonomous shuttle in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

An autonomous shuttle moves passengers along Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

An autonomous shuttle moves passengers along Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

An autonomous shuttle moves passengers along Fremont Street in downtown Las Vegas on Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017. The ARMA shuttle, created through a partnership between Navy and Keolis, is the first driverless public transit vehicle to run in the U.S. The shuttle is slated to run from Jan. 11-20. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto

A fully electric, autonomous shuttle will be invading downtown Las Vegas for the next 10 days.

And city officials want you to jump on board to give it a shot.

Created by French tech company Navya, the shuttle — dubbed the ARMA— will scoot along Fremont Street between Las Vegas Boulevard and Eighth Street starting Wednesday through Jan. 20 as part of a pilot program. The test run marks the first time an electric self-driving shuttle will be deployed on a U.S. street, the company claims.

The ARMA was developed as a clean-energy alternative to traditional fossil fuel mass transit vehicles, according to Navya.

“Busy areas such as the Fremont East Entertainment District of downtown Las Vegas are the perfect place for the ARMA as it allows people to move easily and safely while reducing car congestion and pollution,” Navya vice president Henri Coron said.

The LV city council just pulled up in that self driving bus. Nice entrance #RJnow pic.twitter.com/Rcc486CxTb

— Colton Lochhead (@ColtonLochhead) January 10, 2017

The shuttle is being launched in the city’s “innovation district,” which was recently created to attract tech companies to test products that promote safety, efficiency and alternative energy.

The Las Vegas debut marks the company’s first ride on a U.S. street, but the ARMA has operated in Europe since 2015, and Navya says more than 100,000 people have been transported via ARMA since then.

The shuttle holds up to 12 passengers plus an operator, which has to be on board at all times, according to the company. The rides are free, and those interested in riding will simply have to push a button at one of the shuttle’s marked stops to summon it. The ARMA will run between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. while it’s in town.

The shuttle can go as fast as 25 mph, but will run closer to 15 mph while in Las Vegas, according to Navya marketing manager Nicolas De Cremiers. It has a range of about 90 miles per charge, and takes roughly nine hours to charge, Cremiers said.

Ward 5 City Councilman Ricki Barlow said he couldn’t get over how futuristic the self-driving vehicle was.

So futuristic, he said, that it reminded him of a popular cartoon about a family living in the year 2062.

“We’re living in the day of ‘The Jetsons,’ ” Barlow said.

Contact Colton Lochhead at clochhead@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638. Follow @ColtonLochhead on Twitter.

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