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A self-driving vehicle drives by itself in a neighborhood in Seoul. (provided by the Seoul metropolitan government)

It may be possible to summon a self-driving car with a mobile taxi app in Seoul’s Sangam neighborhood starting in October.

The Seoul government announced Tuesday that it’s looking for companies to provide autonomous vehicle services in the Sangam neighborhood, which a city ordinance has designated as an area for running such services on a trial basis. The available services are call taxis and self-driving buses that will operate in the trial area.

The self-driving buses will serve a set course like a shuttle. The call taxis will operate on a specific route until summoned on the app, at which point they will pick up the customer at a designated point and then take them to their desired destination.

“[The self-driving taxis] will not cruise around as regular taxis do, and there will be limitations on where they can pick up and drop off passengers,” a Seoul official said.

These programs are expected to include around 10 autonomous vehicles, including both call taxis and self-driving buses. A driver will also be aboard the vehicles in case of an emergency.

A self-driving bus drives by itself in a neighborhood in Seoul. (provided by the Seoul metropolitan government)

It will be possible to call the self-driving taxis using the taxi apps currently provided by mobility companies. These apps will provide real-time information about the route, location, and cost of the self-driving taxis and allow passengers to call or reserve a cab and make payments.

Seoul said it has already canvassed Kakao Mobility and other mobility companies about their interest in taking part in the trial program.

Korea’s first fee-based autonomous vehicle program began in Sejong City in December 2020. Launched by Kakao Mobility and Autonomous a2z, this service currently involves two vehicles, and only those who sign up in advance can summon or ride the vehicles.

An autonomous vehicle company called Spring Cloud is currently preparing to launch a fee-based transportation service in Daegu this September.

By Park Tae-woo, staff reporter

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