On April 1, 2026, Singapore's Punggol district became the first neighbourhood in the country where residents can hail an autonomous shuttle on public roads as part of a structured commercial trial. Two separate operator consortia run three routes designed to bridge the first-mile and last-mile gap between residential clusters and key amenities.
The Two Operator Consortia
Grab & WeRide — Ai.R (Autonomously Intelligent Ride)
Grab partnered with Chinese autonomous driving company WeRide to operate two of the three routes. The fleet uses WeRide's GXR and Robobus vehicle models, both equipped with multi-layer LiDAR, cameras, and radar. The Ai.R brand was introduced to distinguish the autonomous service from Grab's standard ride-hailing offerings.
Before the public opening, the Grab-WeRide team completed an extensive community engagement phase that began in January 2026. Over 1,000 early riders participated in preview rides, and the fleet logged more than 30,000 km of autonomous mileage on Punggol roads.
ComfortDelGro & Pony.ai
Singapore's largest public transport operator, ComfortDelGro, partnered with Guangzhou-based Pony.ai to run the third route. This deployment expands ComfortDelGro's existing involvement in autonomous vehicle testing, which previously included partnerships for robo-taxi trials in designated areas.
Route Design and Coverage
Each route features 4 to 7 fixed stops, connecting housing blocks to commercial and community destinations:
- Route 1 (Grab-WeRide): Serves Punggol housing clusters with stops at Oasis Terraces shopping mall
- Route 2 (Grab-WeRide): Connects residential areas to Punggol Plaza and nearby MRT/LRT feeder points
- Route 3 (ComfortDelGro-Pony.ai): Covers approximately 10 km with stops linking housing to community amenities
LTA estimates the shuttle routes reduce public transport commute times by up to 15 minutes for residents who previously had to walk or take longer bus connections to reach these nodes.
Fare Structure
During the initial launch phase, rides are free for all passengers. Revenue service is scheduled to begin around mid-2026, with a flat fare of $4 per passenger per trip regardless of the number of stops travelled. This pricing was set by LTA as part of the pilot conditions and may be adjusted based on ridership data.
Workforce Transformation
A frequently raised concern about autonomous vehicles is their impact on transport workers. The Punggol deployment offers a documented case study in workforce transition:
- Grab retrained 14 existing driver-partners as certified Safety Operators who ride on board the autonomous shuttles
- Additional driver-partners were trained as Remote Operators staffing the Ai.R Operations Command Centre, which monitors the fleet in real-time
- The training programme was developed in collaboration with LTA and includes both classroom instruction and on-road certification hours
The creation of Safety Operator and Remote Operator roles demonstrates that autonomous vehicle deployment can generate new job categories in parallel with the technology it introduces.
Safety and Monitoring
All autonomous shuttles operate under LTA's AV assessment framework. Key safety provisions include:
- A trained safety operator is present on board every vehicle during the current phase
- LTA monitors vehicle performance and regulatory compliance in real-time from a central system
- Each vehicle is equipped with a fault alert system and black-box data recorder
- Comprehensive third-party insurance coverage is mandatory for all AV operators