JFK Airport self-driving shuttle: How it works, what to expect this NYC summer

NEW YORK CITY - Get ready for the Port Authority's first self-driving electric shuttle!

The shuttle will start riding for the public on Tuesday in Lot 9's long-term parking space at JFK Airport in NYC.

"Our goal in using technology is to take that bus, cut it in half, have two all-electric autonomous buses drive around and then cut your wait time in half so that you don't have to wait maybe for the full loop of one bus, we'll have two of these smaller guys driving around," said Seth Wainer, director of innovation for the Port Authority.

The shuttle has a pre-programmed route that will take passengers from any pickup point in the lot to the Howard Beach or Lefferts Blvd/AirTrain Station. The shuttle, which has around eight seats, makes 18 stops along a 1.5 mile route.

"A trolley today stays on track because it's a steel wheel on a steel track, and this is just the 21st century trolley," Wainer says.

It's about 20 seconds between each stop. 

The bus will ride between 8 a.m. – 12 p.m. daily, 7 days a week.