British Partners Target Self-Driving Taxis by 2021

U.K. taxi service Addison Lee Group has signed a deal with British autonomy software developer Oxbotica to launch self-driving shuttles in London by 2021.

The non-equity partnership will use Oxbotica’s Selenium autonomous control system and fleet route management software. The companies haven’t yet decided exactly what sort of service they will provide. But the partners say they will map 250,000 miles of public roads in the greater London area—cataloging all road signs, traffic signals and landmarks—before introducing their robotic vehicles.

Addison Lee currently operates about 5,000 conventional taxis in London. The company says its automated vehicles would be deployed in areas not currently serviced by its private-hire fleet, beginning with relatively easy routes to navigate.

 Oxbotica is a startup spun off from Oxford University in 2014. The company began testing its autonomous-driving software on public roads two years ago. Oxbotica also is part of a two-year test program to test self-driving vehicles between Oxford and London.