Nissan will watch automated vehicles in two cities from one remote operations center

Nissan said on October 14 that it was expanding its autonomous mobility service to the Nada Gogo area of Kobe in December, following what it called successful field tests in fiscal 2025, and named the validation of centralized monitoring as a key aspect of this year’s pilot program. Operations of Level 2 automated vehicles in both Yokohama and Kobe will be watched in real time from the company’s Remote Operations Center in Yokohama.

Nissan described the object of that arrangement as validating a system that remotely monitors multiple operational areas from a single location, which it said was aimed at improving the efficiency of future mobility service operations and reducing the burden on local communities. The two areas named are the Minato Mirai and Kannai districts of Yokohama, and the Nada Gogo area of Kobe with its surrounding districts.

The vehicles are based on the Nissan Serena, and the company footnoted them as equivalent to SAE Level 2 with a safety driver on board. Nissan said the phase was designed to confirm how autonomous transportation can improve mobility for tourists, gain social acceptance and lead to regional revitalization. The Kobe pilot runs from December 8 to December 18, on weekdays from Tuesday to Friday, and adds an on-demand ride booking and dispatch feature reached from a smartphone.

Nissan said it aimed to begin paid service in 2027 and full commercial operations in the Nada Gogo area by 2030. Nissan said the pilot was conducted as part of the Digital Agency’s leading project for early commercialization of autonomous driving services for fiscal 2025 and the transport ministry’s fiscal 2026 subsidy program for regional public transport. Kobe City administers the project, with the Nada Gogo Sake Brewers Association and Moplus taking part.