Munich drivers, passengers and public-transport planners will see a visible step toward driverless city services this winter: MAN Truck & Bus and Münchner Verkehrsgesellschaft (MVG) will open passenger test rides on an automated MAN Lion’s City 12 E from 17 November 2026 as part of the MINGA research project. The trial runs on MVG route 178, with specially trained safety drivers remaining on board and scientific monitoring by local universities.
Project details and timetable
The 12-metre battery-electric bus has been undergoing public-road testing along route 178 since September; from 17 November selected, registered test users will be able to ride the vehicle Monday to Friday between Petuelring and Freimanner Hölzl. MAN and MVG say more than 2,000 people had pre-registered to participate before the passenger phase began. The trial is scheduled to run through June 2027 and is backed by about €13 million in funding from Germany’s Federal Ministry of Transport.
Technical and safety setup
MAN automated the Lion’s City 12 E in cooperation with technology partner ADASTEC. The bus is equipped with a sensor suite including multiple LiDAR sensors, radar and camera units, plus satellite positioning; safety drivers will remain on board throughout the passenger trials and can take control when necessary. The vehicle will operate as an additional service on the existing line rather than replacing scheduled buses, allowing researchers to observe mixed-traffic performance across main roads, 30 km/h zones, park areas and underpasses.
“With the first test rides, passengers can now experience our technology in everyday use. This is a decisive step,” said Dr Frederik Zohm, MAN’s board member for research and development — a comment released by the project partners. MVG described the phase as an opportunity to test whether and how autonomous buses can be scaled and integrated reliably and cost-effectively into scheduled services.
What this means for the market
For Europe's commercial-vehicle and public-transport industries, the MINGA passenger phase is an important demonstration of moving automation from closed pilots into full-size, operational vehicles. MAN’s choice of a 12-metre bus — a capacity figure comparable with conventional solo city buses — signals that manufacturers and operators are targeting real scheduled-service use cases rather than novelty shuttles. The project’s academic monitoring, funded R&D and high local interest (2,000+ pre-registrations) strengthen the evidence base policymakers and operators need to evaluate safety, accessibility and costs for wider roll-out across German and European cities.
If the trials show stable operations and positive passenger acceptance, bus manufacturers and suppliers (sensors, compute and software partners) can be expected to accelerate offers for retrofittable automation kits and production-intent automated buses. For German suppliers and OEMs that already have mass-production and service networks, proof of concept on ordinary urban routes could mean earlier revenue from automation-equipped fleets and from maintenance, software and operator training services across Europe.
At the same time, the test underlines ongoing regulatory and operational work still required: trained on-board staff, route preparation and long testing windows remain necessary steps before driverless, unsupervised services can scale. For cities and operators, the immediate priority will be cost-benefit evidence: whether automation lowers operating costs, increases service frequency or improves accessibility enough to justify investment.
For Munich residents, the next concrete chance to ride an automated full-size city bus starts 17 November 2026 — registered users only, as the project collects operational and user-experience data through June 2027.
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Sources: Sustainable Bus, EuropaWire
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