Yahama is looking to help older residents stay mobile in Japan.
Electric golf cars are helping older residents in rural Japan. According to newspaper Asahi Shimbun, Yamaha is working with the Japan Automobile Federation on a proposal for a wide rollout of a program that has been trialled successfully. A 7-seater electric car in Osaka Prefecture traveled a round-trip route from the parking lot of a supermarket. The driverless car was guided by an electromagnetic guideline embedded on its course. A volunteer sat in the driver’s seat and stopped the car when passengers wanted to get on or off.
“While it will be difficult to fully automate the vehicle’s operations, people can quickly master how to handle it,” the driver, Eiichi Fujii, told the newspaper.
Tsukasa Yokoyama, who works in planning for the region, told the newspaper that the golf car networks are good for getting older residents out and about in the community.
