Chongqing grants first unmanned driving permits

A photo shows the interior of an autonomous driving taxi, also known as a robotaxi, in Chongqing's Yongchuan district. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

"Now Chongqing will be the first in the country to realize unmanned commercial autonomous driving," Ruan said.

The base, established in 2019, was the first in western China for autonomous driving open tests and demonstrations and is taking the lead in autonomous bus services.

According to the local government, the test roads at the base will be expanded from 360 kilometers in an area of 35 square kilometers to 800 km in an area of 60 sq km this year. It is also striving to build a national-level autonomous driving test and demonstration base by the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25).

In November, three buses equipped with the latest autopilot technologies hit the road in the district's Chongqing Cloud Valley Yongchuan Big Data Industrial Park, marking the first autonomous bus route in the country to enter commercial operation.