Toyota has resumed service for its e-Palette mobility vehicle at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, four days after the self-driving van collided with a visually impaired pedestrian.
The shuttle bus failed to stop last week as 30-year-old Japanese judo participant Aramitsu Kitazono was using the pedestrian crosswalk. He reportedly suffered bruising to his head and leg, and was unable to compete in a scheduled match against Ukraine’s Dmytro Solovey.
As described by Japanese publication The Mainchi, the autonomous bus—which had two human operators on board—stopped when it detected a security guard close to an intersection. Kitazono was then struck as the vehicle made a right turn; the operators apparently thought the athlete would stop walking in time. None of the five passengers on board at the time of the incident were injured.
Toyota briefly suspended e-Palette operations, apologizing to Kitazono for the “unfortunate collision,” as well as those in Athletes’ Village who rely on the mobility vehicles.
“Toyota, together with the Organizing Committee, has determined that ensuring safety at an intersection without signals is not something that can be handled by pedestrians, operators, or guides alone,” a Monday press release said. “It is necessary for all three parties to work together.”
With that in mind, the automaker announced improved safety measures, including additional vehicle-approach warning sounds to ensure people with vision impairment or low vision are better aware of their surroundings.
In addition to reiterating “the specifics of the walking environment” and rules for moving around the Athletes’ Village, Toyota promised to change the e-Palette’s manual acceleration/deceleration and stopping functions, as well as increase the number of crew members riding on each bus and stationed at intersections.
All that and more (on-site personnel training, test runs, etc.) was completed in the last four days, with mobility operations resuming in Tokyo this afternoon. Toyota plans to continue making improvements “on a daily basis” through the closing of the Athletes’ Village next month.
