PostBus to introduce autonomous delivery vehicles in Switzerland
The project is supported by the Swiss Federal Office of Transport (FOT) and Federal Roads Office (FEDRO), the cantons of St. Gallen, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Appenzell Innerrhoden and Thurgau, the Touring Club Switzerland (TCS) and other partners. The technology partner is Apollo Go from Baidu.
The autonomous transport service ‘AmiGo’ will “make mobility in Eastern Switzerland even more attractive for customers,” according to PostBus. The transport service is to be a bookable, on-demand service with electric autonomous vehicles, each offering space for up to four passengers.
PostBus promises that the service will launch in early 2027 at the latest, “following an intensive testing phase, ‘AmiGo’ is to be introduced as a permanent service without safety drivers.” For the testing phase, passengers will not be on board, while safety drivers will be present.
The aim of the service is to supplement public transport “in areas where traditional scheduled services are not optimally accessible”, such as rural areas and regions with fewer connections or during off-peak times, as the operator cites as examples.
“We’re bringing the mobility of the future to Eastern Switzerland – flexible, digital and in line with our customers’ needs. They will benefit from a service that’s adapted to their everyday lives and opens up new mobility options. I’d particularly like to thank our strong partners – without their committed support, this innovative, on-demand service wouldn’t be possible. Together, we’re shaping the future of public transport,” said Stefan Regli, Head of Mobility Services and Member of Executive Management at Swiss Post.
Jürg Röthlisberger, Director of ASTRA, added: “Autonomous driving is no longer a vision of the future, but a reality under development. It’s now important to gain experience with driverless vehicles. Pilot projects such as AmiGo show how Switzerland is using autonomous vehicles responsibly, providing safe, efficient and accessible mobility for all.”
No mention is made of the specific vehicle models the company plans to use, but it can be assumed that technology partner Baidu Apollo will be providing the basis. As Liang Zhang, Managing Director of EMEA, Baidu Apollo, says: “We’re delighted that PostBus has chosen Apollo Go as its technology partner. We already successfully operate over a thousand autonomous vehicles with over 14 million cumulative rides worldwide. We’re bringing this experience to our first project in Europe and hope we can continue to strengthen and expand our partnership with PostBus in the future.”
Baidu’s RT6 is a purpose-built electric vehicle designed specifically for autonomous ride-hailing. It features Baidu’s latest Apollo ADFM (Autonomous Driving Foundation Model), a multi-layer safety architecture, and real-time intelligent interaction systems.
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