May Mobility and Stantec are forging ahead with a partnership centered on creating novel solutions through autonomous vehicle microtransit. According to a press release, the collaboration will leverage Stantec’s community relationships and May Mobility’s autonomous vehicle fleet for what is described as “optimized microtransit deployments.” The companies plan to collaborate on infrastructure and pursue new opportunities to implement autonomous vehicles globally across both commercial and municipal locations.
Multi-Policy Decision Making Technology
May Mobility’s partnership with Stantec follows the deployment of its third-generation autonomous driving system, known as Multi-Policy Decision Making (MPDM) technology. Upgrades to May Mobility’s autonomy stack include next-generation pedestrian modeling to help vehicles safely navigate a busy downtown, where pedestrians may or may not be observing the rules of the road (like jaywalking, for example). Other upgrades include on-vehicle traffic light detection for early morning and late evening scenarios and tele-assist, which combines “at-that-moment” human insight with the company’s MPDM.
“A successful AV service needs to be useful, safe, and verified,” said Jacob Crossman, Vice President of Autonomy for May Mobility. “We rigorously test our technology to ensure that it can handle the wide variety of factors and stimuli presented, whether on a busy street downtown or on a quiet rural road.”
Looking Ahead
MPDM will prove significant as the May Mobility and Stantec partnership goes forward. Stantec’s consulting arm, GenerationAV, advises communities and businesses preparing to integrate autonomous technology into their operations. The GenerationAV suite of planning and deployment tools, such as their deployment playbook, Operational Design Domain risk assessment, and operational safety tools, will support May Mobility’s efforts to introduce autonomous microtransit in locales worldwide, including cities, airports, and campuses.
“May Mobility is a global technology leader in autonomous mobility, and we’re proud to partner with them to establish and scale a complete AV deployment system,” said Corey Clothier, Founder and Director of Stantec GenerationAV. “Our partnership with May Mobility is an important next step in our mission to bring safe, equitable, and accessible autonomous transportation solutions to communities around the world.”
“Stantec shares our vision of changing the global landscape to better benefit people and the environments we live in,” said Manik Dhar, Chief Commercial Officer for May Mobility. “Working together, we can create and implement innovative AV solutions for different communities and deliver turnkey AV deployments that are optimized for each location. We will be able to scale our business more efficiently to the benefit of customers and riders.”
