Dubai has begun a four-week Glydways trial at Bluewaters, testing autonomous electric vehicles on dedicated guideways separated from general traffic. The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) will assess technical and operational performance, safety, reliability and possible links with public transport during the test, according to the Gulf Business report.
Testing is taking place along a designated route at Bluewaters. The programme will evaluate how the vehicles operate, how users experience a journey and how vehicle movements are managed. RTA said the results will help it assess whether the system could be expanded, but it has not announced a decision to do so.
The trial began with a five-minute ride by Mattar Al Tayer, RTA’s director general and chairman of its board of executive directors. The authority is examining autonomous driving, sensing, communication and control systems, along with user experience, journey times, ease of use and vehicle movement management. The work is intended to generate data for assessing possible expansion, according to RTA.
What the Four-Week Glydways Trial Will Assess
RTA is conducting the Bluewaters test under a partnership agreement with Dubai Holding, which covers the testing environment, infrastructure and operational support. The initiative follows an earlier cooperation agreement between RTA and Glydways to introduce an automated transit network that could connect stations with passengers’ starting points or destinations.
Each vehicle accommodates four to six passengers, can travel at speeds of up to 50 km/h and has a stated range of up to 250 km on one battery charge, RTA said. The vehicles use 20 high-resolution LiDAR sensors, radar and high-definition cameras alongside autonomous driving and artificial intelligence systems to monitor their surroundings and manage movement.
The sensing equipment will be assessed alongside autonomous driving, communication and control systems, rather than treated as a finished performance result. RTA has described the four-week programme as a test of readiness and reliability. No trial findings have yet been published in the announcement.
The system is designed for round-the-clock, on-demand trips directly between departure and arrival points. Its narrow guideways can be built at ground level or elevated. RTA said the network could carry more than 20,000 passengers an hour in both directions. It also cited capital costs up to 90 per cent lower and operating costs up to 70 per cent lower than similar transport modes. The announcement did not explain the comparison basis or provide trial performance results.
Dubai Routes Remain Under Study
Routes under consideration include a 2.8 km connection between National Paints Metro Station and Bluewaters. RTA also listed possible service to Jumeirah Village Circle, Dubai Festival City, Business Bay and Mohammed Bin Rashid City. The proposals would connect Metro services with residential, commercial and tourist destinations.
The trial’s partnership structure connects with wider questions about public-private infrastructure partnerships, while the electric vehicles relate to planning electric vehicle infrastructure. Transit Tomorrow has also examined autonomous vehicles moving beyond pilot projects. Those stories provide broader reading; they do not describe the Bluewaters test.
The RTA announcement did not specify fares, whether members of the public could take part, or a date for wider commercial operations. It also did not report measured safety, reliability or journey-time results. Those remain questions for the trial rather than established outcomes.
The authority did not specify fares, public access to the trial or a date for wider commercial service. Glydways, founded in 2016, specializes in automated transit networks using autonomous electric vehicles on dedicated guideways. For now, the four-week Bluewaters evaluation will provide the performance and operating data RTA says it needs to consider future integration and expansion.
