In its “Third Basic Plan for Transport Policy,” the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has set a target of 10,000 “Level 4” autonomous vehicles (buses, taxis, and trucks) that do not require a driver by fiscal year 2030. Although this goal is still a long way off, newmo—which operates taxi services in Tokyo, Osaka, and Okinawa—has opened “JOTO Base,” Osaka’s first autonomous vehicle hub. newmo began demonstration tests in 2025 with the aim of introducing autonomous taxis, and autonomous vehicles are already operating in Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture, while also collecting road data. What kind of initiatives will be carried out at this new hub, surrounded by residential neighborhoods? Surprisingly, the company plans to combine this with ride-sharing—another of newmo’s future pillars—to collect data on driving routes. How does newmo plan to realize “Osaka’s autonomous taxis” through JOTO Base? We visited the new hub to find out.
Ride-Sharing Drivers × Autonomous Driving Experiment. Partnering to Collect Data: Ahead of the full-scale launch of JOTO Base, Mr. Hayato Tsuburaya, Head of the Autonomous Driving Development Division at newmo, explained the project’s outline, noting that this facility will host the industry’s first “data collection test drives conducted by ride-share drivers aimed at achieving Level 4 autonomous driving.” Taking advantage of last year’s “Osaka-Kansai Expo,” newmo provided ride-sharing services (passenger transportation using drivers’ personal vehicles) offering direct access to the venue from various locations throughout Osaka Prefecture, which were used by many people. Even now, when using the newmo app, the options “Taxi or Ride-Share” appear in some areas, indicating that drivers from both services are operating within Osaka City. newmo had previously recruited drivers to collect data and reportedly received as many as 80 applications. Drivers travel along a route such as JOTO Base → Maishima, Osaka City → Sakaihama, Sakai City → JOTO Base, adjusting their paths along the way to collect data on the surrounding area, such as road widths and curve conditions. Since this is currently a phase focused on “collecting data in preparation for the introduction of autonomous driving,” the vehicles are, of course, driven by human drivers. Looking ahead, the plan is to first collect data in 2026, improve autonomous driving performance in 2027, and by 2028, establish a system capable of “operating at Level 4 (driverless) under certain conditions to handle ride-hailing, passenger pickups, and transportation.” The data accumulated through JOTO Base will be shared with the nation’s 5,549 taxi companies—operating a total of 169,000 vehicles—and with drivers nationwide who are struggling with labor shortages. However, according to Director Tsuburaya, “It is still unclear whether we will sell a package that includes data development and commercial operations as-is, or simply launch an app that taxi companies nationwide can adopt.”
Equipped with cameras and LiDAR sensors on top. What are these data-collection vehicles? With the full-scale launch of JOTO Base on June 15, two data-collection vehicles set out. This base has three vehicles, and for the time being, two will be in operation. The base can accommodate 15 vehicles, and since it collaborates with “Yumeshima Kotsu,” a newmo-affiliated taxi company located nearby, the company plans to increase the number of vehicles and deploy electric vehicles (EVs) in the future, with staffing levels increasing accordingly. JOTO Base features a garage on the first floor and a waiting area and office on the second floor; it appeared to be reasonably spacious and comfortable. The data collection vehicles have already been operating on a trial basis several times since May. They capture road footage, verify locations, and collect positional data using three cameras mounted on the roof, a LiDAR sensor, and a GPS device at the rear. Based on this data, the company says it needs to continue collecting road condition data until the vehicles can operate on actual routes as “flexible taxis that pick up passengers multiple times a day.” However, according to a ride-sharing driver who actually operates the vehicle, in order to ensure stable data collection, “you have to obey the speed limit and stay in the center of the lane,” so it seems there are challenges involved in driving this way that differ from normal driving. When operating autonomous taxis, the vehicles must navigate to various destinations using autonomous driving; without basic data covering the entire route—including intermediate stops—they cannot reach their destinations, whether it’s Shinsaibashi or simpler locations like Shin-Osaka. It can be said that the current data collection efforts are laying the groundwork not only for commercialization in 2028 but also for work that will continue for the next five to ten years. Furthermore, according to those involved, the basic data does not yet include “near-misses”—such as “accident-prone areas” or “narrow roads with poor visibility”—and they must continue to explore how to incorporate these elements. It appears there are still several hurdles to overcome before this data can actually be used for autonomous taxis.
© Source travel watch