An intelligent unmanned bus in operation in Deqing Geographical Information Town, located in Deqing county, Huzhou. [Photo/WeChat account: huzhoufabu]

A fleet of six intelligent unmanned buses has commenced operations in Deqing Geographical Information Town, located in Deqing county, Huzhou. The buses, which began operating on Dec 30, 2023, are equipped with cutting-edge technology to offer citizens a smarter, more efficient, safer, and smoother travel experience.

With a capacity of approximately nine passengers and a range of about 180 kilometers, the buses operate on a fixed schedule, departing every 30 minutes. This development represents the first commercial operation of scenario-based applications in the development process of transforming Deqing into a national-level Internet of Vehicles (IoV) pilot zone.

Since 2023, Deqing has actively promoted the integrated development of geographic information and IoV, aiming to evolve into an intelligent driving city in China. As the largest national-level IoV hub, the county boasts a comprehensive 5G communication network and a high-precision geographic information network covering the entire county. Deqing is also home to an intelligent connected vehicle testing ground, spanning 949.3 kilometers of roads, allowing open testing for 18 applications across four major IoV scenarios.

To further support the development of the IoV industry, Deqing has established a dedicated fund worth 1 billion yuan ($139.81 million). The local government has also implemented a raft of measures, including the inauguration of a one-stop service window, to optimize the business environment and attract a wide range of upstream and downstream enterprises in the IoV industry. In the past year alone, Deqing successfully attracted 11 projects related to autonomous driving.