May Mobility, a developer of autonomous vehicle (AV) technologies, and Via are taking their next collaborative step to expand the public deployment of AVs across the U.S. and beyond. In a new agreement, the companies plan to deploy thousands of additional AVs around the world for public transit over the next three years.
The companies first partnered in 2021 and, together, offer on-demand, dynamically routed, and shared AV services in three cities. Over the next three years, they will look to more AVs into the public transit systems of these cities and further cities around the globe. Enabled by Via’s AI-based booking and routing algorithms, on-demand rides are available through a Via-powered smartphone app. The app matches a number of customers headed in the same direction into one vehicle – creating flexible, efficient, shared trips in the process. Through the expanded agreement, both companies will work to enable faster, more streamlined launch operations for future sites worldwide.
May Mobility and Via operate in a mix of urban, suburban, and rural cities – each with unique set of mobility needs. Together, they design customized AV services that consider the ridership requirements of each of the communities they serve. May Mobility’s focus on improving accessibility has enabled the development of its wheelchair-accessible vehicles, equipped with an ADA-compliant ramping system. When using the app, wheelchair users can permanently toggle their status that they are picked up by one of these vehicles to provide a safe, convenient, user experience.
As part of its expanded agreement with Via, May Mobility will have access to Via’s Remix software – a transit planning platform for on-demand and other flexible mobility services. May Mobility will leverage Remix to further optimize its AV routes, while advancing its sustainability and equity goals – using proprietary data from over 200 Via deployments and 100 million shared Via rides.
