The city announced on the 29th that the Dawn Companion Autonomous Bus A741 will begin early-morning service on the 30th, running a 23.5 km (about 14.6 miles) round trip between Gupabal Station and Yangjae Station.
A741 departs at 3:30 a.m. for a single circuit. Unlike earlier autonomous buses, it will operate in full autonomy across the entire route — including protected zones for children, seniors and people with disabilities — without requiring manual intervention.
Seoul said that after authorities authorized autonomous driving in protected zones on Jan. 26, sections that previously required a safety driver to take control can now be handled by the autonomous system.
The A741 will follow the regular 741 route but will stop at only 34 of the route’s 64 stops — those with the highest early-morning boardings — allowing it to arrive about 20 minutes earlier one-way.
Service will be free while operations stabilize. Passengers must tag their transit cards when boarding and alighting, as on regular city buses. For safety, standing riders are not permitted; if all seats are occupied, the bus will not accept additional passengers.
In November 2024, the city launched autonomous bus A160 on the route between Dobongsan Station and Yeongdeungpo Station; about 27,600 riders used that service over 15 months.
Seoul plans to expand autonomous service on congested early-morning routes. By April, it aims to introduce autonomous operations on route 148 between Sanggye and the Express Bus Terminal and on route 504 between Geumcheon-gu Office and Gwanghwamun.
“We empathize with residents who start the city’s day early, and we will continue expanding the Dawn Companion autonomous bus to better serve vulnerable riders,” said Yeo Jang-gwon, director of Seoul’s transportation office. “Our goal is to establish the world’s first autonomous-driven framework for 24-hour, uninterrupted public transit and to prioritize delivering the benefits of advanced mobility technology to socially disadvantaged groups.”
