On-demand car-hailing service using remote-controlled driverless vehicles has launched in Milton Keynes.

Fetch, run by Imperium Drive, has undergone 18 months of testing. The launch of the service in Milton Keynes, is the first step in what is intended as a national service.

Dial a car

Customers can hire a car through the Fetch app, stating when they need it and for how long.

An electric vehicle (EV), remotely controlled by an operator, is then delivered to them. The customer then drives the car themselves to their destination. When the rental period is up, the remote vehicle operator takes over and pilots the car back to base or to the next user.

“It’s driverless but not autonomous – yet,” says Koosha Kaveh, the chief executive of Imperium Drive.

“There’s still a human involved, but they’re sitting in a control centre piloting the vehicle in the same way you would a drone.

“When fully autonomous, we think this system has the potential to replace private car ownership in the UK. Why pay all the costs of having a car on your drive when you can just pay for one to arrive when you need it.

“For short trips, the service offers the same convenience as a ride-hailing or taxi service, but with the ability to cover greater distances at less than half the cost of services like Uber or Bolt.”

 

Starter for four

There are currently four cars in the Imperium Drive fleet, operating within a four-mile radius of the Milton Keynes city centre hub.

Further regional hubs are planned to enable intercity travel and airport transfers.

To ensure the safety of occupants and other road users, the cars have multiple cameras attached to them. This gives the operator a 360-degree view, while the operating system uses computer image algorithms to detect anything near the car.

Is it safe?

RAC road safety spokesperson Simon Williams has concerns over the development. He describes it as similar in “a video game-like manner”.

Williams worries not about the views on screen, but more the “somewhat disconnected” manner from “the reality of actually being behind the wheel”.

“There’s also a risk they could be distracted by something in the room where they are located. We also fear there could be serious consequences when this scheme is rolled out more widely and if the delivery distances were to be lengthened to take in faster roads.”