LILEE Systems, a provider of advanced wired and wireless communication products, solutions and services for the transportation industry, announced its company founder/CEO Dr. Jia-Ru Li will be delivering the keynote address at the Innovation Without Borders event in San Francisco on January 15, 2019.

Dr. Li’s speech, The Future of Smart Transportation: The Autonomous Bus Has Arrived, will focus on the major advances in the field of Autonomous Rapid Transit (ART). LILEE Systems is among a consortium of transportation and high-tech experts currently running the world’s first nine-meter diesel bus, carrying citizens, running on regular streets with signal priority enabled.

The program started taking passengers on the 2.9 km autonomous bus route on December 21, 2018 in Taichung City, Taiwan and will continue until January 20, 2019. In the first 10 days of operation, the autonomous bus welcomed more than 2,000 riders.

To architect a public autonomous bus program requires stringent planning. Meeting these requirements is imperative for a successful outcome. LILEE Systems adopted a concept called: ACES in Mobility, established to advance the next generation of smart transportation. ACES is an acronym developed from the four key components needed to push forward a smart transportation system: Autonomous, Connected, Efficient and Safe. The Taichung City project achieved all the necessary ACES criteria to insure consistency and reliability, according to the company.

Taichung experienced a population boom and now faces the same growing pains as many other cities around the world. Working with city planners and the private sector, Taichung hopes to solve the common issues of a transit driver shortage, financial deficit, high demand for public transportation, air pollution, and road safety. Developing the foundation of a smart city and the inclusion of rapid autonomous transit is a huge step forward in achieving these goals, the company stated.