Central Romania: Cluj-Napoca City Hall tests driverless bus

An autonomous, driverless bus was tested on Thursday, May 22, in Cluj-Napoca during the International Summit for Climate Neutrality, held under the slogan "Carbon OFF. Future ON,” to demonstrate the integration of modern technology into public transport.

The bus performed a demonstration tour on a short route, starting from the Radisson hotel, crossing George Coșbuc Street and Splaiul Independenței, passing by Cluj Arena, and returning to the starting point.

The vehicle, produced by the Turkish company Karsan, has a range of 300 km, a capacity of 25 seats, and can travel at a maximum speed of 25 km/h.

Cluj-Napoca mayor Emil Boc welcomed the initiative, highlighting the importance of vision and innovation in the city's development.

“Technology has advanced enormously and I am glad that here in Cluj-Napoca, just like in Europe, we can test the technology of the future, namely autonomous vehicles, autonomous buses, because they have already been integrated into some European cities, admittedly on a smaller scale, into the public transport system,” he said, cited by local news outlet Cluj24.ro.

“All traffic signs, traffic lights, have been integrated into the control algorithm of this bus. We are traveling on a digitized route, and the bus will make decisions accordingly. It is, first and foremost, safe,” said professor Bogdan Varga from the Technical University of Cluj-Napoca.

So far, 10 such autonomous buses have already been delivered to countries like Norway, Germany, Switzerland, and France.

“The system has already been operating in Europe for three years. We started in Norway, and we are present in 10 European countries with this system, as well as in the United States,” said the representative of the Turkish manufacturer, Murat Emre Duman.

Emil Boc added that although Cluj is ready to take the step toward implementing autonomous transport in the public system, the lack of clear legislation in Romania currently prevents its large-scale launch. “Work is underway, and I am confident that the Romanian Parliament will be able, following the example of other countries, to come up with the appropriate legislation,” he said.

The mayor recalled that Cluj-Napoca was a pioneer in introducing electric buses and is already working on implementing hydrogen buses, the metropolitan train, and, in the future, autonomous transport.