Vision 2030 – Saxony Conference on Autonomous Driving in Public Transportation

ABSOLUT is participating in the industry conference in Dresden, signing a letter of intent on autonomous driving, and presenting insights into the latest developments

On April 23, ABSOLUT II partners, along with Saxony's Minister of State for Infrastructure and Regional Development, Regina Kraushaar, and State Secretary Sebastian Scheel, signed a letter of intent on autonomous driving. Other signing parties included partners from the business, scientific, and public transportation sectors, as well as Leipzig's Mayor of Construction, Thomas Dienberg. The event was held as part of the symposium ”Vision 2030: Autonomous Driving in Saxony’s Public Transportation System.”

Contents Of The Letter Of Intent

The letter of intent aims to bring autonomous driving into real-world operation in Saxony’s public transportation system and, for the first time, establishes a common, binding framework for all parties involved: All signatories commit to advancing the use of autonomous vehicles (Level 4) in public transportation so that they are suitable for everyday use and economically viable by 2030, and subsequently scaling this up across the region. The focus is particularly on improving mobility in rural and suburban areas, ensuring access to existing public transit services, and strengthening regional economic value chains.

Autonomous driving opens up new possibilities 

For LVB, autonomous driving is more than just a technological development. It offers the opportunity to redefine public services and make mobility more flexible, responsive to demand, and reliable—especially in areas where existing services are reaching their limits. The focus is on solutions that work in everyday life and provide real added value for passengers.
With the Flexa and ABSOLUT projects, LVB is already demonstrating how autonomous driving can concretely contribute to securing public services: economically viable, regionally networked, and tested under real-world conditions.
The recently launched SIAS-ÖV project now marks the next step: the integration of a licensable driverless Level 4 industrial vehicle into an existing, automated public transit system. At the same time, LVB is further developing the interaction between infrastructure, control center, vehicle, and approval processes to lay the groundwork for scalable, production-ready solutions that pave the way for regular operation.

A Key Role in Autonomous Driving

Saxony has the potential to establish itself as a driver of innovation for autonomous driving in public transportation. The Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe, together with the City of Leipzig and the District of North Saxony, are playing a key role in this effort: They are consistently further developing successfully tested projects such as Flash and ABSOLUT under normal conditions and in close collaboration with passengers, and are gradually putting them into practice. This results in solutions that can be replicated statewide and, in the future, could become the standard for tomorrow’s public transportation.

Powerful partners

The following partners have signed the letter of intent: AMZ – Saxony Automotive Suppliers Network, Bertrandt Group, CADA – Chemnitz Automated Driving Alliance, DB Regio AG, Fraunhofer Institute for Transportation and Infrastructure Systems IVI, IAV GmbH, the City of Dresden, the District of Northern Saxony, Leipziger Verkehrsbetriebe GmbH, Saxon Energy Agency – SAENA GmbH, Saxon State Ministry for Infrastructure and Regional Development, Saxon State Ministry for Economic Affairs, Labor, Energy, and Climate Protection, Smart Rail Connectivity Campus gGmbH, City of Leipzig, staff-eye GmbH, Dresden University of Technology (Chair of Vehicle Mechatronics), Association of German Transport Companies e.V., Volkswagen Sachsen GmbH, and the East Saxony Transport Association.