Associated Incidents
Several people were injured in the crash, caught on video in St Petersburg, with one woman getting trapped under the tram's wheels.
The £1.7 million “retro” tram fitted with artificial intelligence was on a test run with a driver ahead of a planned driverless revolution in Russia.
But according to the tram's experienced driver, the AI system suddenly "turned off" and the brakes failed, as did the back-up emergency brake.
The tram’s brakes had been checked before it went out on the test run.
And the 45-year-old driver - who had never before had an accident - had passed a medical test.
He reportedly watched in horror as the tram hit pedestrians crossing the track, with a woman mowed down and ending up under it.
“The brakes first failed when he noticed cars changing lanes and attempted to reduce speed,” said a report by Fontanka news outlet.
“Realising the brakes were ineffective, the driver applied the emergency brakes, which he asserts also did not fully work.
“The tram slowed but not sufficiently…. The lights turned first yellow, then red.
“Pedestrians were already crossing the road when the driver sounded the horn.”
The so-called “Smart Tram” has a Russian-designed AI “driver assistance system” but there was no clear explanation why it was turned off.
The crash now marks a severe setback to St Petersburg's once-confident plans to make its trams completely driverless.
The company behind the tech experiment is AI Cognitive Technologies, headed by artificial intelligence entrepreneur Olga Ushkova.
Ushkova reportedly said automation would “remove human factors”.
“The failure of the tests of the ‘smart’ unmanned tram is a severe blow both to…Uskova herself and, in general, to trust in artificial intelligence systems, at least in their Russian interpretation,” reported Babr.Media.
Other local media reported: “Such technical issues may occur, and it is to further eliminate them that test runs are necessary.”
The hi-tech trams have been made to look like Soviet-era models, with a total of 76 being manufactured for St Petersburg.
They were made by UralTransMash, Russia's leading producer of self-propelled artillery known for supplying arms to Vladimir Putin’s war.
The company is also part of tank-maker UralVagonZavod.
The St Petersburg city authorities have now announced a probe involving an “expert commission” into the incident.
A criminal case into “violation of traffic rules and operation of transport vehicles” has also been launched.