Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Digital Development believes that autonomous vehicles can significantly reduce the number of road accidents. According to Gizzat Baitursynov, сhairman of the Committee on Digital Assets and Breakthrough Technologies, safety is the main argument in favor of launching robotaxis in Almaty, Astana and Kosshy.
Robotaxi safety statistics
As Baitursynov noted, driverless taxi technology has already proven reliable in several countries. He stated that, according to Waymo’s statistics, after covering 56 million miles, the company’s robotaxis reduced accident rates by 96%.
«In Moscow, Yandex launched a pilot driverless taxi project in 2023. They reported 36 traffic accidents, only two of which were caused by autonomous vehicles, with no injuries. Moreover, statistics show that these vehicles are much safer for our citizens,» the expert emphasized.
How will safety be ensured?
In the initial stage, a human driver will be present in the vehicle to intervene in case of an emergency. If no incidents are reported over a sufficient period, the human driver will be removed.
«If all goes well and no incidents occur, these cars will operate without a backup driver. Instead, a remote operator will monitor them 24/7 and will be able to take control if necessary,» Baitursynov explained.
All vehicles will be equipped with LiDAR sensors and integrated with high-definition maps.
Who is behind the project?
The main partners in the project are Yandex and inDrive. Self-driving cars are expected to appear on roads in Almaty, Astana and Kosshy by the end of 2026. According to Baitursynov, the vehicles will initially operate in specific areas of each city. If successful, the technology will be expanded to cover entire cities and eventually the whole country.
«When we started working on this project, we encountered several regulatory challenges, such as importing the vehicles and registering them. For example, should these cars use standard license plates, or should they have distinguishing features such as special plates or stickers? There were many questions like that,» the official said.
The city of Kosshy was selected based on Yandex data showing a high volume of daily travel between Astana and Kosshy.
«We plan to resolve all regulatory issues by the end of the first half of the year. By the end of the year, we aim to allow these vehicles onto public roads,» Baitursynov stated.
Read also: Kazakhstan to begin testing self-driving taxis this spring
Earlier, a demonstration run of a driverless car was held in Astana during the Nauryz holiday celebrations. Festival guests were able to see how this type of transport operates and better understand its potential use in the city.
