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Autonomous Bus on the Naeseong–Jung-dong Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Corridor Launches Late-Night Passenger Service Today

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Busan Metropolitan City Mayor Park Heong-joon announced that, starting today (26), the City will begin a late-night autonomous bus passenger service on the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor connecting Naeseong Intersection and Jung-dong.
From today (26) through June 30, the service will operate on a pilot basis. Operating hours are from 11:30 p.m. to 3:30 a.m. on weekdays. The service will not operate on the first Friday of each month.

The route runs approximately 10.4 kilometers (km) from Dongnae Station / Naeseong Intersection to Haeundae District Office Eogwi Samgeori Intersection, taking about one hour one-way. It will operate four one-way trips per day (two round trips), with a 60-minute headway (120 minutes round-trip).

During the pilot period, rides will be free of charge. If regular operation is adopted in the future, fares will be charged at the same rate as city buses.

To ensure safety, standing passengers will not be allowed and ridership will be limited to a maximum of 15 passengers per trip. Seat belt use is mandatory. In addition, a safety staff member will ride on board to secure public safety and user convenience as the top priority.

The City will assign safety staff to the vehicle to respond to unexpected situations and will establish a safety management system that reflects risk factors associated with late-night passenger service. It will also strengthen inspection and management procedures before, during, and after each operation.

The City will continue to analyze driving data collected during operations to further enhance service quality, and will also review, in phases, extending operating hours and expanding routes.
This launch follows the City’s assessment that driving safety and system stability have been sufficiently secured based on the autonomous bus trial runs on the Naeseong–Jung-dong BRT corridor conducted for about two months, from November 3, 2025 to January 23, 2026.

In addition, after confirming positive public feedback and reliability through passenger rides in the Osiria autonomous bus daytime passenger service over the past six months, the City expanded the service into nighttime hours and widened the operating corridor to the Naeseong–Jung-dong BRT section.

During the trial period, the City focused on verifying the safety of autonomous driving technology, conducting artificial intelligence learning, and accumulating operational data, while comprehensively checking driving stability in real-road environments and the interoperability between vehicles and road infrastructure.

The City completed verification of core autonomous driving technologies, including vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, precision-map-based driving, and driving stability on bus-only lanes, and also confirmed capability to respond to unexpected situations and overall system reliability.

Vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication refers to communication technology through which an autonomous vehicle exchanges information in real time with road infrastructure, traffic signals, other vehicles, pedestrians, and more, supporting intersection safety, accident prevention, and smooth driving.
In particular, by verifying stable operation in an actual public transportation environment—namely, a BRT dedicated lane—the City secured foundational data to expand autonomous public transportation services across Busan in the future.

Hwang Hyeon-cheol, Director General of the City’s Transportation Innovation Bureau, said, “Busan Metropolitan City is welcoming citizens after verifying the safety and reliability of the autonomous bus on the Naeseong–Jung-dong BRT corridor through sufficient trial operations,” adding, “We will support citizens so they can return home safely even late at night, and we will continue to expand autonomous public transportation services in phases based on a thorough management system.”