Japan autonomous bus trials reach 143 vehicles

MM Research Institute said on May 13 that Japan’s autonomous bus demonstration projects reached 143 vehicles carrying passengers on public roads in fiscal 2025, up 18 from the previous year. The survey counted 106 projects with confirmed operations at Level 2 or higher, according to the institute and an IBTimes Japan report that cited the findings. Osaka, Ibaraki and Tokyo were the only areas with 10 or more vehicles in operation, the report said. Osaka’s total was driven mainly by deployments tied to Expo 2025 Osaka-Kansai, where the official expo website says about 100 electric buses are operating on routes inside and outside the venue and that Level 4 automated-driving technology is part of the demonstration. ### Why does the 143-vehicle figure matter? The 143-vehicle count is one of the clearest snapshots of how far Japan’s public-road bus trials have moved beyond one-off pilots. MM Research Institute said the vehicles were used in passenger-carrying projects, not closed-course tests, and that all confirmed operations were at Level 2 or above. (jp.ibtimes.com) The year-earlier comparison was 125 vehicles in fiscal 2024, based on the institute’s reported increase of 18. That still leaves the sector well below the scale envisioned in longer-range forecasts published by the same research group in January 2025, when it said Japan could have about 1,200 autonomous buses by 2030 and 7,000 by 2040. (jp.ibtimes.com) ### Why is Osaka ahead of most prefectures? Osaka’s lead reflects the concentration of autonomous-mobility projects around Expo 2025 Osaka-Kansai. The expo’s official website says visitors can ride on about 100 electric buses on routes inside and outside the site, and that the program includes Level 4 automated driving in what it describes as a large-scale demonstration. (jp.ibtimes.com) A February 18 report by mobility outlet NEXT MOBILITY said Osaka Metro received approval for what it described as Japan’s first Level 4 certification for a large bus serving public roads connected to the expo’s park-and-ride operations. That report said the planned transport period ran from April 13, 2025 to October 13, 2025, matching the expo schedule. (expo2025.or.jp) ### What does “Level 2 or above” mean in this count? Level 2 is still a driver-assistance category, not driverless service. Japan’s National Police Agency says drivers using automated driving assistance systems remain responsible for safe driving, while Level 4 corresponds to driverless automated operation under a permission system that took effect in April 2023. (nextmobility.jp) That distinction matters because the 143-vehicle tally mixes projects at different automation stages. The count shows breadth of testing activity, but it does not mean 143 driverless buses are already in regular service. ### What is Japan trying to build beyond the demos? Japan’s transport and policing authorities have already put the legal framework for higher-level automated driving in place. (npa.go.jp) The National Police Agency says the 2022 amendment to the Road Traffic Act created the permission system for specified automated operation, equivalent to Level 4, and those provisions took effect in April 2023. The transport ministry’s autonomous-driving page links that regime with subsidy programs, regional committees and the government-backed “RoAD to the L4” project for research and deployment. (jp.ibtimes.com) MM Research Institute said in its January 2025 forecast that Japan’s national strategy calls for more than 100 locations with region-specific driverless automated mobility services by fiscal 2027. The same forecast said bus-driver shortages were a central reason more autonomous bus deployments would be needed over time. ### Where are the next concrete deployments? (npa.go.jp) Kumamoto City is one example of where trials are moving toward a higher automation level. Sumitomo Corp. said on January 27, 2025 that an autonomous bus trial in Kumamoto would assess technical performance and public acceptance, with a goal from fiscal 2026 onward of implementing Level 4 autonomous driving and linking the service with nearby stations, bus routes, the airport area and taxis. (m2ri.jp) Fiscal 2027 is the next national milestone named in the sources. MM Research Institute said the government’s strategy targets more than 100 locations for region-limited driverless automated mobility services by then, while local projects such as Kumamoto’s have set fiscal 2026 as the next step toward Level 4 operations. (m2ri.jp) (sumitomocorp.com)