Isuzu to create autonomous test drive course in Hokkaido

MANILA: Isuzu Motors Limited (IML) is set to open a dedicated autonomous driving test course some two years from now.

The complex shall be within the grounds of Isuzu Hokkaido Proving Ground Company (a member of the Isuzu Group) in Mukawa.

Spanning approximately 190,000 square meters, the Isuzu test course will feature various traffic infrastructure and multiple testing areas that will include:

• Simulated urban streets
• Highway merging and exiting sections
• Rural roads

Further, IML said that the testing ground is designed to accommodate long, heavy vehicles like articulated buses and truck trailers.

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Eyed to commence full-scale operations by September 2027, the partial use of the course (which is Japan’s first dedicated autonomous driving test course established by a commercial vehicle manufacturer) shall start by summer of 2026.

The creation of the test grounds forms part of its initiative to push for the creation of Level 4 autonomous trucks and buses. Aside from that, IML shared that the course is intended to be opened even to organizations outside the Isuzu Group — including autonomous driving startups, automotive parts suppliers, and the transport infrastructure sector.

Prior to the establishment of the Test Course, IML had a groundbreaking ceremony last August 27 at the site slated for construction.

“Autonomous driving solutions will be a future pillar of Isuzu's business. The Isuzu Group will contribute to the advancement of autonomous driving technology through the operation of this test course, pioneering a future of safe and secure mobility to help realize a society free of accidents,” IML Executive Engineering Division Vice President Ken Ueda was quoted as saying.

Meanwhile, IML Engineering Division Vice President Hiroshi Sato expressed firm belief that the test course will be an “essential infrastructure for the Isuzu Group” as part of its goals in becoming the leader in autonomous driving for commercial vehicles.

“We hope that in a few years, it will become a hub for open innovation, a center for autonomous driving where various companies and organizations collaborate on research and development,” he added.

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