Hyundai Motor's driverless buses hit Pangyo's streets Thursday

Hyundai Motor's RoboShuttle [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

Hyundai Motor will start operating two self-driving buses on the streets of Pangyo, Gyeonggi, starting Thursday.

It will be the automaker's third test run of the technology after Sejong and Namyang last year.

The driverless buses, which the company calls RoboShuttles, have Level 4 autonomy technology. A level 4 self-driving vehicle is able to operate on its own under ordinary conditions. Human intervention is rarely required. Level 3 technology requires the driver to be present at all times in case an intervention request is made. A level 5 vehicle can manage all scenarios on its own, which is not technologically possible yet.

These buses are based on Hyundai's Solati four-door van.

The robot buses will travel on 540 meters of road in Pangyo. The buses are controlled by passengers summoning them by a mobile app or using it to signal they want to get off.

“They don’t stop at a stop if there is no passenger that wants to get on or off," Hyundai Motor said. "This shortens the travel time for the passengers."

Pangyo is home to many IT companies and start-ups, and test runs in the area will help the company improve its autonomous driving technologies, it added.

The buses are accepting Hyundai employees for now and will be available to the general public in the future.

"We've been test running various services such as RoboRide and RoboShuttle based on the autonomous technology we have developed," said Jang Woong-jun, executive vice president at Hyundai Motor's autonomous driving business division.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]