Mobility Innovation Roadmap Released
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced its mobility innovation roadmap on Sept. 19. According to it, Level 4 autonomous buses are expected to become commercially available in 2025 and the same technology is expected to be employed in privately owned cars in 2027. The ministry is planning to commercialize Level 3 late this year, which will be behind only Japan and Germany.
In addition, the ministry is planning to launch the first urban air mobility (UAM) service in South Korea in 2025. The service for airport users is anticipated between a downtown area in Seoul or Gyeonggi and the Incheon and Gimpo Airports. According to the roadmap, multiple vertiports in major cities will be built by 2030 so that airports, train stations and bus terminals can be better connected.
The roadmap also mentions delivery robots in apartment complexes and downtown areas, UAM services for Busan Expo 2030, and autonomous car-only highway lane designation for testing purposes scheduled for the first half of next year.
The ministry is also working on hyperloop technologies so that logistics services at 800 to 1,200 km/h can be started in 2040. Hyperloop passenger transport is yet to be included in the roadmap of the ministry.