Citroën reveals The Citroën Skate for future urban mobility

Citroën is not standing still. Having recently unveiled its vision of modern urban mobility in the form of the likeable Ami, the French marque has once again got to work, presenting a new answer for the urban mobility of the future.

The result is “The Citroën Skate”, a fully autonomous platform, capable of Level 5 autonomous driving, designed to travel through cities with virtually no interruptions and without requiring human control. It would be charged inductively via dedicated charging bases.

Its ‘bodywork’, meanwhile, takes the form of a range of capsules, or Pods, intended for different services and uses.

The Urban Collëctif mobility partnership

Three of these Pods have been designed by Accor and JCDecaux, companies that have joined Citroën in a partnership called “The Urban Collëctif”, which aims to establish a new mobility concept.

According to Citroën, separating the platform from its mobility services makes it possible to “maximise the use of autonomous technology while expanding service offerings”.

Manoeuvrability is no obstacle

Conceived as a shared mobility solution, “The Citroën Skate” replaces conventional wheels with rubber spheres, similar to the ball found in a computer mouse. Manufactured by Goodyear, these provide omnidirectional 360º manoeuvrability.

Fitted with “Citroën Advanced Comfort” suspension, the platform contains both the technology needed for autonomous driving, including radar and lidar, and its batteries and electric motor.

Measuring just 2.60 m long, 1.60 m wide and 51 cm high so that it does not take up excessive space, “The Citroën Skate” has a top speed restricted to either 25 km/h or 5 km/h, depending on the area in which it is operating. Its speed can also be adjusted according to the use of the Pods fitted to “The Citroën Skate”.

Promising to improve traffic flow by at least 35%, “The Citroën Skate” is the mobility platform that enables Pods to move according to demand, positioning itself underneath the requested Pod. Once selected, the Pod is coupled in just 10 seconds.

Citroën Skate autonomous platform and its Pods

The first Pods were developed by Citroën’s two partners in “The Urban Collëctif”. Accor created the “Sofitel En Voyage” and “Pullman Power Fitness” Pods with the aim of “inventing ‘mobile hospitality in the heart of cities’”.

The “Sofitel En Voyage” Pod can carry between two and three passengers, taking its inspiration from Paris, French furniture and couture. Inside, it features an LED screen, a bar and even a tablet for video calls with a Sofitel concierge, who could arrange a restaurant booking or theatre tickets.

The “Pullman Power Fitness” Pod, on the other hand, aims to deliver the sporting experience of Pullman fitness rooms. Carrying a single user, it allows them to exercise independently while travelling through the city, with a rowing machine on one side and a bicycle on the other. A digital coach is on hand to assist them.

The first Pods

Finally, JCDecaux opted to develop its Pod around on-demand urban transport solutions for all users. The result is the “JCDecaux City Provider”, which carries up to five passengers and provides them with USB sockets and two interactive screens.