Image: MANPlans to test an autonomous city bus from MAN in Munich have been in place since 2023. At that time, stakeholders presented the MINGA research project (Munich’s Automated Local Transport with Ridepooling, Solo Buses, and Bus Platoons).The Mobility Department of the City of Munich is leading the project. The Federal Ministry of Transport (BMV) is providing around €13 million in funding under the programme ‘Autonomous and Connected Driving in Public Transport.’Originally scheduled for 2025, the autonomous solo bus is now set to enter trial operations in regular urban traffic from autumn 2026 with the Munich Transport Corporation (MVG). In recent months, MAN has worked with its new partner Adastec to equip a fully electric 12-metre bus of the type MAN Lion’s City 12 E with an Automated Driving System (ADS) and integrate it into the vehicle’s electronic architecture.The reference to a ‘new partner’ is notable: Mobileye was originally set to act as the technology partner. It remains unclear why the switch occurred. MAN has been asked to comment, and an update will follow as soon as further details are available.Adastec, which has roots in Turkey and the USA, focuses on software solutions for automated driving at SAE Level 4 for buses and commercial vehicles. The company is already involved in several projects, including the Albus initiative led by Üstra in Burgdorf. Interior view of the autonomous busImage: MANFor the MINGA project, the Lion’s City 12 E has been fitted with five LiDAR sensors, six radars, eight cameras, and a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System). Combined with Adastec’s software, the electric bus is technically capable of automated driving. Initial test drives are already underway at MAN’s Munich site, where specific manoeuvres such as approaching bus stops are being tested. According to MAN, the goal of this phase is to refine the system, gather critical operational data, and further optimise the automated driving functions.The MVG’s official pilot operation is set to begin in autumn with a closed user group. The vehicle will, among other things, steer, accelerate, brake, and signal independently. A safety driver will be on board to monitor the systems,” said Dr Michael Roth, Head of Bus Strategy and Product Strategy Bus at MAN.Feedback from test users will also be systematically evaluated. The partners plan to announce in due course when and under what conditions public participation will be possible.In the long term, automated buses are expected to improve transport safety while helping to address the driver shortage. Munich’s outgoing mayor Dieter Reiter (SPD) previously highlighted the issue, noting that the city has many buses ‘but no one to drive them.’ Autonomous buses could offer a solution to this challenge.At the same time, MAN plans to feed insights from the MINGA project directly into the development of future vehicle generations. The company has been working on driverless buses for years and aims to bring a fully automated series vehicle at SAE Level 4 to market within the next decade—for emission-free, connected and automated urban mobility. MAN has named 2030 as the target year.mantruckandbus.com
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