Before scooping the prestigious Vehicle of the Year title at the Self-Driving Industry Awards 2024, at the Turner Contemporary in Margate, on Friday 22 November, Ohmio provided public rides in its all-electric Lift shuttle in the gallery car park.
Ian Pulford and the Ohmio UK team with Sophie Lloyd of Milton Keynes City Council. Image: Cars of the Future
Speaking on behalf of the judging panel, Cars of the Future editor, Neil Kennett, said: “At last year’s inaugural Awards, Mayor Rob Yates challenged us to get a driverless car to Margate. Better than that, we got the Vehicle of the Year winner – although they didn’t know it yet – to give locals their first taste of full self-driving. The feedback was universally positive, and the BBC were there to film it.
“Rather than an augmented version of an existing car or bus, the Ohmio Lift was designed to be self-driving from the beginning. With no driver’s seat or steering wheel, it can carry up to 20 passengers, with disabled access prioritised via an automatic ramp and dedicated wheelchair bay.
“Here in the UK, visitors to the NEC in Birmingham will soon enjoy rides as part of the government-backed SCALE project. More significantly, it will soon be on-road in Milton Keynes, as part of the StreetCAV project – supported by CCAV, Innovate UK and Zenzic – potentially providing a blueprint for nationwide deployment.
“Presenting the award to Ian Pulford, Director of Ohmio UK, Polly Billington, MP for East Thanet, set us a new challenge: Self-driving from the Main Sands to Walpole Bay next year. If they can prove the safety case in Birmingham and Milton Keynes, then why not Margate? Why not every town and city?”
Event video: https://vimeo.com/1032856717
