Insight

Autonomous vehicles are learning to navigate pavements and pedestrian zones at slow speeds, not just roads. The INSIGHT project takes existing self-driving vehicles and adapts them for safe operation in spaces where people walk, shop, and gather. These vehicles connect wirelessly not only for remote control and fleet management, but also to collect data and run interactive applications for users and nearby customers. This matters because current autonomous vehicles are designed for roads, leaving a gap in last-mile delivery, campus transport, and pedestrian-area logistics. Pavements and shared spaces pose different challenges—tight corners, unpredictable foot traffic, and the need for very low speeds—that standard autonomous systems cannot handle. If INSIGHT succeeds, it could change how goods and services move through city centres, university campuses, and retail districts. The vehicles themselves become mobile platforms for data collection and customer interaction, quietly supporting urban logistics and local commerce without requiring new infrastructure. The project does not claim to solve all autonomous navigation problems; it focuses narrowly on making existing vehicles safe and useful in pedestrian environments, where the biggest practical barriers remain.