Throughout the two-day event, residents of Varaždin—including students, seniors, emergency service personnel, local officials, and citizens with special needs—will take part in hands-on experiences with AV technology. The demonstrations aim to test not only the vehicles, but also the social and governance frameworks that support their adoption.
Programme Overview:
– 21 October: Preliminary test drive with emergency services
– 22 October – Demonstration Day 1
→ Involving students, senior citizens, people with special needs, and local government representatives
– 23 October – Demonstration Day 2
→ Engaging academic partners, business associations, professional organisations, and emergency services
Each group of participants is limited to 24 individuals, ensuring focused interaction and high-quality feedback on the tools, safety measures, and public perceptions related to autonomous mobility.
These demonstration activities represent a living lab approach, where local conditions, governance questions, and user experiences converge in a real urban environment. Varaždin is the first of three pilot cities in the GINEVRA project to host such demonstrations- Cesena (Italy) and Bad Schönborn (Germany) will follow.
This initiative puts into action GINEVRA’s core mission: supporting cities in governing transformative innovations in a responsible, participatory, and transparent manner.