The aim of the research projects is to investigate what effects a public transport offer with self-driving vehicles on the Ålgårdbanen railway can have on the climate, the environment and people's travel habits. The project, which has received support from the Regional Research Fund, will assess costs for upgrading existing infrastructure and vehicle technology in the context of how a possible new travel offer can fit with existing public transport offers in the region.

A long-awaited offer‍

The region has wanted a public transport offer on the Ålgårdbanen railway for many decades, but the infrastructure does not meet the current technical requirements for rail transport. The last passenger train on Ålgårdbanen ran in 1955. The last freight train ran in 1988. New calculations from the Norwegian Railway Directorate show that it will cost NOK 2 billion to reintroduce trains on the Ålgårdbanen railway.
“This initiative will find an answer to whether it is socially and economically sustainable with a collective offer of self-driving vehicles on Ålgårdbanen,” says Linn Terese Lohne Marken, General Manager of Mobility Forus. SINTEF, the national infrastructure industry cluster VIA and Kolumbus are participating in the research.

Transformation of the transport sector

Norway has adopted national targets for more use of new technologies and reduction of climate and environmental gases, among other things, by allowing more people to choose to travel collectively. In the European context, intelligent transport systems (ITS) are considered fundamental to the transformation of the transport sector to achieve the emission reduction target of 90% by 2050. “There is a rapid development in the market for new technologies in the transport sector,” says Lohne Marken, who was responsible for Norway's first self-driving bus project at Forus in 2018.

Since Mobility Forus started in 2018, both legislation and technology have opened up for greater speed and more comfortable solutions.

- We are now facing a change of pace in the industry with more, series-produced vehicles from well-known car brands to choose from. That means self-driving vehicles will be cheaper and more accessible, but it requires facilitated infrastructure and continued good cooperation with the authorities for large-scale rollout,” says Lohne Marken.

Wool rig for green transport

Through the support from VRI Rogaland, Mobility Forus, VIA and SINTEF will map the potential for business development with Ålgårdbanen as a testing ground for intelligent transport systems.
- The region has companies that have supplied products for complex infrastructure projects, including the world's longest undersea tunnel. In order for the road network and Norwegian traffic authorities to handle smarter cars, buses and wagon trains in the long term, knowledge and testing of new technologies is needed, says Helen Roth, General Manager of the VIA cluster.

- This is a large international industry with enormous market potential for Norwegian suppliers, she adds, stressing that the initiative is primarily about research to find answers. Any change of application will be more extensive and require political treatment.

Fact box
· Mobility Forus has Norway's longest experience as an operator of self-driving vehicles. Operates Route 17 for Kolumbus between Stavanger city centre and Badedammen.
· VIA is Arena Pro cluster in the national programme of Innovation Norway, the Swedish Research Council and SIVA. Has 110 cluster members from academia, private sector and public sector.
· Ullrig is an important national testing facility for the oil and gas industry.