Autonomous shuttle buses reach level 3 – remote monitoring in preparation
The pilot project with autonomous shuttle buses at Zurich Airport has reached another milestone: Following successful test drives without passengers, employees have been allowed to ride on the buses at the airport since June. A safety driver is still a requirement in this project phase. The next step is to test the use of the buses with remote monitoring.
Autonomous shuttle buses have been undergoing testing at Zurich Airport since March 2025. Since June, employees at Zurich Airport have been able to use the shuttle buses to travel between the airport head office (Gate 101) and the works yard (Gate 130). For safety reasons, a driver is still on board and can intervene at any time. The pilot project has thus reached automation level 3.
The next milestone we are striving for is automation level 4. This would mean that there will no longer be any safety drivers on the bus, but only remote monitoring will be implemented.
In order to achieve this goal, the project team has carried out intensive preparatory work over the past few months in conjunction with technology partner WeRide and numerous departments within the company. This includes setting up the entire IT infrastructure and performing hundreds of test runs and comprehensive technical testing. In addition, training sessions have been held, regulatory requirements integrated and processes optimised together with the partners.
Installation of remote monitoring
To this end, a remote cockpit has been set up and tested at the ZRH Innovation Hub in the Circle since September. Looking forward, the vehicles will be monitored remotely from this centre. If a vehicle encounters an unexpected obstacle, it automatically stops. Employees in the remote cockpit can assess the situation and provide assistance with driving manoeuvres if necessary. This is still a long way off. However, the project is progressing rapidly.
We expect to be able to carry out initial tests with remote monitoring and without a safety driver by the end of the year at the earliest.
These trips will initially be carried out without passengers. Following a trial phase, the buses could then also be operated autonomously with passengers on board. This would make Zurich the first airport in Europe to operate a system like this within the flight operations area.
Close interaction a determinant of success
Zurich Airport Ltd. is implementing the project in conjunction with logistics company Krummen Kerzers AG, which has provided some of the safety drivers from the outset. In September, the groundhandler Swissport was also included as a further project partner. Looking forward, Swissport will provide additional safety drivers as well as remote monitoring employees. The automated driving technology built into the vehicles is provided by WeRide.
We are working closely with our partners and internal departments on this innovative project. This ensures that sufficient consideration is given to technological, organisational and operational aspects.
The project is providing important findings for the safe use of automated vehicles in a highly sensitive environment. It is laying the regulatory, infrastructural, technical and safety-related foundations for future projects involving automated driving for companies operating at Zurich Airport.