Since September 2025, VINCI Autoroutes has been testing an autonomous shuttle on the A10, a major motorway in France, marking the first such trial on a motorway worldwide. This project, supported by the France 2030 initiative through the Investissements d'Avenir program, involves a collaboration between VINCI Autoroutes, the startup Milla, the operator SAVAC, and Gustave Eiffel University. The goal is to prove the shuttle's profitability by 2028, with the hope of integrating it into the Navigo pass, a regional transport ticket. A key challenge is removing the need for a safety driver and convincing Île-de-France Mobilités, the regional transport authority, that the model is economically viable. The autonomous shuttle service connects the towns of Longvilliers and Massy-Palaiseau and has received substantial public funding. The Investissements d'Avenir program is providing several million euros to support the project, which is considered a global first in autonomous collective transport on a motorway. The French government is investing in such innovations to encourage the use of public transport and reduce reliance on individual cars in the Île-de-France region. VINCI Autoroutes plays a central role in the project, acting not only as a manager of infrastructure but also as a financial backer and a provider of real-time traffic data. Moroine Laoufi, the project director, explains that operating a shuttle on a motorway with 80,000 vehicles per day is complex. The shuttle, which travels at 90 km/h, aims to integrate into traffic like trucks. This public-private partnership aims to transform the motorway into a testing ground for innovative mobility solutions. Currently, each shuttle has an onboard operator (a safety driver) and is monitored remotely from the Chevreuse center, which increases the cost of operations. To ensure economic viability, the consortium must eliminate the need for a safety driver by 2028. Moroine Laoufi acknowledges the difficulty, noting that developing an AI system capable of managing onboard incidents is essential. Without full automation, the economic model will struggle to compete with traditional express buses due to the high cost of employing safety drivers. The project's profitability depends on integrating the service into the Navigo pass starting in 2027-2028, with compensation for the operator based on a public service delegation model. The consortium aims to attract enough users to justify the public investment. Each shuttle can carry 12 passengers, making about two trips per hour. However, this is still a small fraction of the 80,000 vehicles that pass on the A10 daily. The plan is to increase the number of shuttles to 5 or 10 by 2028, raising the hourly capacity to 120-240 seats. Profitability will depend on the occupancy rate and frequency of trips. Since March 2026, 150 people have tested the service, but it has not yet generated commercial revenue. Expanding to a commercial scale will require significant investment—tens of millions of euros—to acquire more shuttles, train staff, and adapt the infrastructure. The return on investment will hinge on reducing the cost per passenger compared to traditional express buses. Île-de-France Mobilités plans to launch tenders for autonomous transport lines starting in 2028. The VINCI-Milla-SAVAC consortium, as a pioneer in this area, will face competition from European and Asian companies. The selection criteria will include cost per kilometer, technical reliability, and regulatory compliance. The current experiment on the A10 will serve as evidence of the shuttle's operational feasibility. The A10 motorway sees 80,000 vehicles pass daily, mostly for commuting. If 1% of drivers switch to the autonomous shuttle, that would reduce traffic by 800 vehicles daily, saving about 200,000 tons of CO₂ annually. Beyond environmental benefits, this shift could ease traffic congestion, improve productivity, and lower road maintenance costs and accident rates. These positive effects are estimated to be worth hundreds of millions of euros. However, converting these benefits into a profitable model for the private operator remains a challenge. Without long-term subsidies or special pricing, the autonomous shuttle risks remaining a technological demonstration rather than a significant change in mobility in Île-de-France.