Stockholm’s newest ferry has a fully-qualified captain with nothing to do, because the 30-passenger electric ferry is equipped with all the tools to drive itself among Stockholm’s islands.
For now, the captain is on board for safety and testing, but eventually the ferry which plies routes between Kungsholmen and Sodermalm, will be unmanned. Named for Sweden’s Princess Estelle, it is said to be the first of its kind in the world.
The boat is equipped with radar, cameras, lidar laser and ultrasonic systems compiling the data to plot its course; the CEO of the company that built it says it already “sees like a captain,” adding that “If a boat changes direction or if there’s a canoe we see it right away in less than a second. We update the course accordingly.”
The project, which cost $1.6 million for the first boat, is a public-private partnership that hopes the ferry will encourage more walking and cycling to work.
