Seoul prepares for driverless future with 500 autonomous buses by 2030

Seoul announced on Thursday a plan to deploy 500 fully autonomous buses on regular city routes by 2030. The Seoul Metropolitan Government signed an agreement with Hyundai Motor Company and the Seoul Bus Transportation Business Association at City Hall to develop Level 4 buses and supporting systems. The rollout will start with vehicle development and safety testing in 2027-2028, then commercial service in 2029.

Hyundai will build specialized 11-meter buses designed for autonomous integration under the agreement.

The buses will include electronic steer-by-wire and brake-by-wire systems, redundant safety controls and cyberattack defenses.

Seoul plans to standardize and aggregate data from on-vehicle LiDAR and vision sensors to support AI developers, universities and startups.

The city said older municipal buses will be retired gradually as commercial deployment begins in 2029.

Published Oct 1, 2026 2:01 pm KST

Updated Oct 1, 2026 2:17 pm KST

A Cheonggyecheon Autonomous Bus runs along a road near Cheonggye Plaza in central Seoul on Nov. 25, 2022. Yonhap

In a move that could permanently reshape urban transit in one of Asia’s most densely populated metropolises, Seoul city officials announced an ambitious strategy, Thursday, to integrate 500 fully autonomous buses into regular city transit routes by 2030.

The initiative took a major step forward when the Seoul Metropolitan Government signed a landmark agreement with Hyundai Motor Company and the Seoul Bus Transportation Business Association at City Hall. The tripartite partnership aims to bridge the gap between niche technological trials and full-scale public utility, laying the groundwork for driverless Level 4 automation across the city's bus network.

Under the agreement, Hyundai will engineer and manufacture specialized 11-meter buses designed specifically for autonomous integration. Unlike standard vehicles retrofitted with aftermarket sensors, these factory-built models will feature electronic steer-by-wire and brake-by-wire systems, redundant safety controls and cyberattack defenses, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Government.

"Seoul is taking the lead in connecting cutting-edge driverless technology directly to the daily commutes of our citizens," said Mayor Oh Se-hoon during the signing ceremony. "By working as a unified team with Hyundai and our local transit operators, we will enhance urban mobility while ensuring safety remains our top priority."

The plan addresses mounting structural pressures on traditional public transit.

Transport authorities across Korea have faced rising operational costs and a rapidly aging workforce of professional drivers. Transitioning to autonomous fleets offers municipal leaders a sustainable long-term operational model.

The city’s journey toward autonomous transit did not start overnight. Seoul previously introduced late-night autonomous shuttle routes to serve early-morning commuters and late-shift workers. However, scaling up to primary routes required standardized infrastructure and industry-wide collaboration.

To support software developers, Seoul plans to standardize and aggregate data collected from on-vehicle LiDAR and vision sensors. By sharing real-world driving environments and edge-case scenario data, municipal officials said they intend to cultivate an open software ecosystem for artificial intelligence (AI) developers, universities and tech startups.

The rollout will follow a phased schedule.

Between 2027 and 2028, the focus will be on vehicle development, AI model refinement, and public safety testing. Commercial deployment will begin in 2029 as older municipal buses are systematically retired, scaling up to 500 Level 4 autonomous buses in active service by 2030.

Level 4 autonomous vehicles are high-automation vehicles that can drive completely on their own without human intervention, but only within predefined geographic areas and specific conditions.

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.

首尔市政府周四宣布了一项计划，拟在2030年前在常规城市线路上投放500辆全自动驾驶公交车。首尔市政府与现代汽车公司和首尔公交运输业协会在市政厅签署了协议，共同开发L4级自动驾驶公交车及配套系统。该计划将于2027-2028年启动车辆研发和安全测试，并于2029年正式投入商业运营。

根据协议，现代汽车将制造专为自动驾驶集成而设计的11米专用巴士。

这些公交车将配备电子线控转向和线控制动系统、冗余安全控制系统和网络攻击防御系统。

首尔计划对车载激光雷达和视觉传感器的数据进行标准化和汇总，以支持人工智能开发者、大学和初创企业。

该市表示，随着2029年开始商业运营，老旧的市政公交车将逐步退役。

发布于2026年10月1日下午2:01（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年10月1日下午2:17（韩国标准时间）

2022年11月25日，一辆清溪川无人驾驶巴士行驶在首尔市中心清溪广场附近的道路上。（韩联社）

首尔市政府官员周四宣布了一项雄心勃勃的战略，计划到 2030 年将 500 辆全自动公交车整合到常规城市公交线路中，此举可能会永久改变亚洲人口最稠密的大都市之一的城市交通格局。

首尔市政府与现代汽车公司和首尔公交运输业协会在市政厅签署了一项具有里程碑意义的协议，标志着该计划向前迈出了重要一步。这项三方合作旨在弥合小众技术试验与全面公共应用之间的差距，为在全市公交网络中实现L4级无人驾驶自动化奠定基础。

根据协议，现代汽车将设计和制造专为自动驾驶系统集成而设计的11米专用公交车。首尔市政府表示，与加装后市场传感器的标准车辆不同，这些工厂生产的车型将配备电子线控转向和线控刹车系统、冗余安全控制系统和网络攻击防御系统。

“首尔正率先将尖端无人驾驶技术直接应用于市民的日常通勤，”市长吴世勋在签约仪式上表示，“通过与现代汽车和本地公交运营商紧密合作，我们将在确保安全的前提下，提升城市交通出行效率。”

该计划旨在解决传统公共交通面临的日益增长的结构性压力。

韩国各地的交通管理部门都面临着运营成本不断上涨和专业驾驶员队伍迅速老龄化的双重挑战。向自动驾驶车队转型为市政领导者提供了一种可持续的长期运营模式。

首尔迈向自动驾驶交通的道路并非一蹴而就。此前，首尔曾推出夜间自动驾驶接驳巴士线路，服务于早高峰通勤者和晚班工作者。然而，要将其推广至主要线路，则需要标准化的基础设施和全行业的合作。

为了支持软件开发者，首尔计划对车载激光雷达和视觉传感器收集的数据进行标准化和整合。市政府官员表示，通过共享真实驾驶环境和极端场景数据，他们旨在为人工智能（AI）开发者、高校和科技初创企业打造一个开放的软件生态系统。

该计划将分阶段实施。

2027年至2028年间，重点将放在车辆研发、人工智能模型改进和公共安全测试上。随着老旧市政公交车逐步退役，商业部署将于2029年开始，到2030年，将有500辆L4级自动驾驶公交车投入运营。

4 级自动驾驶汽车是高度自动化的汽车，可以在无需人为干预的情况下完全自主驾驶，但只能在预先定义的地理区域和特定条件下行驶。

本文由生成式人工智能协助发布，并由《韩国时报》编辑。