Acceptance of autonomous shuttle among Indian users: a UTAUT model analysis

Automation in vehicles is one of the promising solutions to enhance road safety by minimizing human error, a primary cause of road crashes. However, the introduction of highly autonomous vehicles in countries like India with complex, mixed traffic conditions remains a long-term goal. Nevertheless, the pilot deployment of autonomous vehicles under controlled road environments can offer valuable opportunities to examine the public acceptance of autonomous vehicles for travel. In this study, the TiHAN-Autonomous Campus Shuttle, developed at the Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, was assessed for user acceptance inside the institute campus. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology framework was employed to examine the Indian road users’ acceptance of the autonomous campus shuttle. The autonomous shuttle operated between the academic blocks and the institute’s main gate, with five intermediate stops. The shuttle users participated in a survey that included questions on user demographics and the constructs: social influence, hedonic motivation, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, facilitating conditions, and behavioural intentions. The demographic parameters considered for analysis included age, gender, and past shuttle ride experience. The study revealed that hedonic motivation, facilitating conditions, and effort expectancy positively influenced the users’ intention to use the shuttle service. Additionally, age negatively impacted the shuttle usage, and female passengers displayed significantly lower user acceptance. The findings from the study provide valuable insights to technology developers, transport planners, and service providers to support the autonomous shuttle deployment under similar operational road environments in India.