Christchurch airport gets driverless 'Smart Shuttle'

In the aftermath of the quakes, Christchurch is beginning to make a name for itself as a city of innovation and opportunity.

A fully autonomous, driverless shuttle has been introduced at Christchurch Airport today. The vehicle will carry up to 15 people, has no steering wheel and is electric powered.

Chirstchurch Airport Chief Executive Malcolm Johns is positive about this move into the future and is keen to see how travellers interact with the vehicle.

"We want to explore the possibility of deploying autonomous vehicles to assist people moving around our campus efficiently and sustainably," he says.

Christchurch International Airport and HMI technologies are working together on the New Zealand funded trial, which will begin to be run on private roads on the airport campus.

"The significance of attracting this project to Christchurch at this time cannot be over-stated. This is an incredibly exciting time in our history," says Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel.

It is expected that once the vehicles have been deemed safe they will be open to the public in a controlled environment. The trial is expected to take at least two years and is set to begin in the next few weeks.