Self-driving shuttle bus launched in Belfast Harbour
There is no driver on board the bus, although there is a "safety operator' sitting behind a wheel that turns itself.
Belfast Harbour say the goal of the project is to offer 'last mile connectivity' between the train station and the rest of the harbour estate, connecting 'transport networks to businesses, tourist attractions and education and leisure facilities'.
During a pilot period between now and September, the bus will be entirely free to use for members of the public.
The Harlander was developed by the Harbour along with several other companies, including eVersum, Oxa, Angoka, BT and Horiba Mira.
A special right-hand drive version of an electric bus was created specifically for the Harlander service by the Austrian firm Hobira Mira.
Oxa are behind the self-driving technology, while safety testing was carried out by Hobira Mira, a Coventry-based company.
In May, Belfast Harbour said the vehicle was 'tested to death' by Hobira Mira in order to ensure its safety.
Mike Dawson, people and digital transformation director at Belfast Harbour, said: 'Following eight weeks of testing, we are delighted to launch the Harlander to the public to offer last mile connectivity on the Harbour Estate.
'This is a groundbreaking project for Northern Ireland and is a step towards fully driverless transport.
'Belfast Harbour has a strong track record of supporting innovation and this project supports our Smart Port ambitions, utilising cutting-edge technology to support our tenants and the public.
'We're excited to see the public reaction and utilisation of the service.'
In May, Mr Dawson described the shuttle as an attempt to 'incentivise' people to use public transport by more seamlessly connecting the train and Catalyst.
He described the current loop of four stops as a 'model and a blueprint' that will be used to find what is 'viable for other services'.
'What we'd like to do is have this run, learn from it, particularly the passenger experience and customer experience.
'What does that look like? What does that feel like? What needs to be tweaked, improved? How do you make sure there are no barriers to entry for people to be able to get on and access it?'
The Harbour plan for the Harlander to be a first step towards an increasing amount of autonomous vehicles being used in Northern Ireland's transport network.
Mr Dawson said that he would 'like to see' self-driving vehicles across the city: 'We would like to see more of these, where you can create connectivity on the estate itself.
'We see this as a much bigger play regionally, not just for Northern Ireland, but also for GB, where you can get connectivity to those main routes.
'Imagine you had estates in the city where you had these types of routes feeding the Glider route.
'It doesn't replace bus drivers, it augments what we have in place today.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
19 minutes ago
- The Independent
MTG again lashes out at Trump this time over his AI plan: ‘An absolute threat to federalism'
Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a staunch ally of the MAGA movement, broke from President Donald Trump on Thursday to oppose his executive order on artificial intelligence, raising concerns about its impact on the environment and states' rights. Hoping to accelerate the United States's development of AI, Trump signed a series of executive orders on Wednesday, making it easier to build data centers on federal lands and incentivizing states to impose fewer regulations by threatening to withhold federal funding to AI projects. But Greene raised a red flag, saying she was concerned with the impact of massive data centers on the people and environment around, while providing little to no regulations. 'My deep concerns are that the EO demands rapid AI expansion with little to no guardrails and breaks. It also contains the threat of withholding federal funds from states who regulate AI, which is an absolute threat to federalism and why I strongly opposed the AI state moratorium originally in the BBB,' Greene wrote on X. Trump has pushed for more AI development in the U.S., hoping for companies such as Meta, Google, OpenAI, and Microsoft to develop and expand their AI technology beyond what the Chinese-based company DeepSeek has already done. But the Georgia congresswoman said the 'rushed AI expansion' should include a plan to address human and environmental impact – with particular concerns around using nearby water supplies that cross state lines. 'Competing with China does not mean become like China by threatening state rights, replacing human jobs on mass scale creating mass poverty, and creating potentially devastating effects on our environment and critical water supply,' Greene wrote. 'This needs a careful and wise approach. The AI EO takes the opposite.' Greene's statement is the latest in a string of opposing stances that she has taken against Trump, whom she has typically expressed unwavering loyalty to. Recently, Greene has also criticized the administration for not releasing the Epstein Files, a recent Trump-backed crypto bill, and the president's decision to intervene in the Iran–Israel conflict by bombing Iranian nuclear facilities. Her additional opposition also comes at a moment of contention between the president and his MAGA base. Trump's dismissal of the Epstein Files, of which conspiracy theories have floated in the MAGA world for years, appears to have caused a fracture in his base's trust. It's unclear how many may feel about the AI bill, but Greene's opposition provides some insight. 'I represent the base and when I'm frustrated and upset over the direction of things, you better be clear, the base is not happy,' Greene said on X back in May.
Daily Mail
19 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
The suburbs in Australia where house prices are surging because of high levels of immigration
House prices are now surging in suburbs with mid-point prices under $1million in cities with high levels of immigration. Perth is one of Australia's best-performing property markets with the median house price soaring by 6.5 per cent during the past financial year to $855,395, Cotality data showed. That price point means a working couple, including a part-time parent raising the children, can still afford to enter the market. However, that is still well below Australia's midpoint price for houses of $1.034 million, and affordable outer suburbs are seeing double-digit annual growth from Perth to Sydney and Adelaide. Peter Gavalas, the founder of Perth-based buyer's agent Resolve Property Solutions, said Perth suburbs with median house prices under $1million were doing particularly well because they appealed to people moving in from other parts of Australia. 'Many new arrivals are professionals with stable incomes, looking to build long-term lives in Perth,' he said. 'They're targeting family-friendly, well-connected areas and are often ready to act quickly, which is putting added pressure on supply at the affordable end of the market.' Unlike Sydney, Melbourne, and now Brisbane, it's still possible to buy a house in Perth for less than $1million in suburbs near the city. Peter Gavalas, the founder of Perth-based buyer's agent Resolve Property Solutions, said suburbs with median house prices under $1million were doing particularly well because they appealed to people moving in from other parts of Australia Carlisle, 8km south-east of Perth's city centre, has a mid-point house price of $908,939, and values during the past year have climbed by 7.4 per cent. Nearby Belmont, 9km from the city, has a median price of $835,007 and values there went up by 7.9 per cent in the year to June. But the outer eastern suburbs of Perth had even stronger growth with Midlands prices going up by 13.1 per cent to a still affordable $627,033, in an area 17km from the city. West Australia also has the nation's strongest population growth of 2.4 per cent last year, based on a big influx of new residents, with 45,124 moving in from overseas, on a net basis, as 12,612 came from interstate. 'International buyers are attracted by Perth's lower entry prices, strong job market and lifestyle benefits, including quality education and transport links,' Mr Gavalas said. 'A budget of $750,000 to $900,000 still stretches far here, especially when compared to Sydney or Melbourne.' Sydney In Sydney, suburbs with median prices are almost 40km from the city, with Lurnea having a mid-point price of $996,791. The 5.8 per cent annual increase was better than greater Sydney's 1.7 per cent rise over the year and house in this part of south-west Sydney are selling for a lot less than greater Sydney's mid-point approaching $1.5million. Sydney receives the biggest influx of overseas migrants, making it by far Australia's most expensive capital city market. But New South Wales had a weaker population growth pace of 1.3 per cent last year as 106,730 new overseas migrants moved in, on a net basis, as 28,118 residents left the state for another part of Australia. Brisbane Brisbane now has a median house price of $1.011million but affordable suburbs are seeing some of the biggest growth with Acacia Ridge values, 18km south of the city centre, rising by nine per cent to $850,716. Queensland's population growth of 1.9 per cent last year was better than the national average of 1.7 per cent based on 56,877 moving in from overseas as 25,940 came from interstate. Melbourne Melbourne, a city getting more than 100,000 new overseas migrants a year, is a weak housing market but prices are now soaring in affordable outer suburbs where homes with a backyard sell for way less than the city's mid-point of $947,611. Frankston North, 55km from the city, saw its mid-point house price climb by 6.9 per cent to a still-affordable $645,182. Adelaide Adelaide has been Australia's best performing housing market during the past year with values soaring by 7.7 per cent to $886,869 - despite having weaker population growth. South Australia's population grew by just 1.1 per cent as 1,582 left the state for another part of the country and 19,546 migrants moved in. Affordable suburbs in Adelaide's north are doing particularly well, thanks to strong demand from investors, with Salisbury East values soaring by 13.4 per cent to $698,790. Someone earning $100,000 a year can still buy a house at Elizabeth Park where the mid-point price is $569,599 following a 13.1 per cent increase over the year.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Vogue readers furious after spotting 'disturbing' AI models in an ad in the prestigious magazine
It looks like fashion label Guess is not shying away from using artificial intelligence in its ad campaigns - after the brand ran a two-page spread in this month's August edition of Vogue that was 'produced' by an AI marketing company. The advertisements appeared about halfway through Vogue's August print issue, showing a woman with bouncy, long blonde hair modeling two different outfits on separate pages. The images were not part of Vogue editorial, but instead, presumably paid advertisements for the Guess brand that appeared in the famous fashion bible. In one ad, the model sat at a café table with a cup of coffee, wearing a light blue romper covered in mesh floral detailing, as well as a gold watch and necklace from the brand. The other photo depicted the same AI model in a black-and-white chevron print dress, carrying a matching Guess handbag in front of a 'shop' filled with hats in their window. In the fine print on the side of the ad, it read that the campaign was produced by 'Seraphinne Vallora on AI.' Seraphinne Vallora is an agency that designs 'editorial level AI-driven marketing campaigns and cinematic videos,' its campaigns featured not only in Vogue but also in Elle and Harper's Bazaar. On its website, London-based founders Valentina and Andreea stated that they wanted to use AI to brands' advantage. 'We want to harness the incredible power of AI to revolutionize marketing images. We realized that AI offered a cost-effective, hassle-free path to design brilliance,' the website reads. 'No more expensive travel or complicated arrangements, We wanted to make it all accessible, to companies of all sizes. 'An easy solution to market their companies without the stress and complications.' Daily Mail reached out to Guess for comment. But the advertisement didn't seem to slip past eagle-eyed fashion fans, as it went viral on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday morning. Popular account Pop Crave posted a TikTok made by user @lala4an, which showed the ad. However, Pop Crave incorrectly claimed that Vogue was using the AI models - when it was in fact Guess. But even so, it looks like many fashion fans weren't happy with the choice, as they furiously responded to the Pop Crave post. 'This is kinda sad. There's so many people who would love to be on the magazine just for them to be giving these opportunities to AI…' one user wrote. Another agreed, 'That's disturbing. This is the direction AI should not be going in... wow.' 'AI is not even sparing the fashion industry,' someone else typed. One X user pointed out, 'Great. The new beauty standard will be, literally, unobtainable because it's not real.' Others, however, thought that it was a great sign for the future. 'The future is here. Takes less time and much cheaper to make,' someone shared. Another agreed, 'Well, it's cheaper.' The advertisement comes just one year after OpenAI and Vogue's publishing parent, Condé Nast, announced a partnership together, per BBC. The deal involved allowing ChatGPT and its search engine, SearchGPT, to display content from Vogue and its other publications like GQ. The deal was reported to be multi-year.
