Riverside to test three Ohmio shuttles

Riverside will bring three Ohmio shuttles to the city for a test run.

The Riverside Transit Agency will staff, operate and maintain three of the electric vehicles for a two-year period, according to an agreement reached recently between those two entries.

That trial run, which could start as soon as next January, will be the first use of all-electric, autonomous shuttles by a public transit agency in the United States. The transit agency will contribute $500,000 to the project, which will add to its bus fleet and help it meet its zero emissions goals.

Riverside and the South Coast Air Quality Management District will contribute $1 million each to the project. Because Riverside is the point of sale – which means sales taxes from each vehicle will accrue in Riverside – the city expects to get its investment back in four years.

“Ohmio is an innovative company at the forefront of this exciting transportation technology,” Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson said in a statement on the city’s website. “This agreement means we will have a trusted local partner putting these vehicles on the street, helping the agency fill gaps in transit use.”

Designed for low-speed road the Ohmio shuttle can reach 31 mph but typically operate at about half that speed, according to the statement.