The UK government is developing legislation to permit autonomous cars to drive on public roads, which will address a range of issues such as insurance, liability and cybersecurity and establish a legal framework to govern driverless vehicles.
Known as the Automated and Electric Vehicles Act (AEVA), the legislation is spearheaded by the Law Commission (the body responsible for consulting with the public and relevant industries ahead of the introduction of new laws), and work has now begun on identifying how laws could be modified to accommodate autonomous cars.
When complete, the legislation will apply to cars that can drive independently some or all of the time – effectively level-three autonomy and above, as defined by SAE International.
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Many cars are currently available with level-two features, such as lane-keeping assistance and adaptive cruise control systems operating simultaneously. Level three is a big jump, comprising hands-off technology, which means the person at the wheel doesn’t drive at all when the system is engaged but must retake control when the car says so.
The new Honda Legend, which was launched in Japan this March with a price tag of 11 million yen (£71,000) and limited to 100 lease sales, is said to be the first car available with officially sanctioned level-three technology. Its Traffic Jam Pilot system was approved by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism last November as being allowed to operate the car independently at up to 31mph on major carriageways.
The British Department for Transport (DfT) made a similar pledge this April when it announced that cars with automated lane-keeping systems (ALKS) would legally be allowed on the road before the end of this year, with their operation capped at 37mph.
The DfT said that it would “ensure the safe use of ALKS, including whether [it] met the definition of automation in the AEVA,” which is the first example of the legislation in action, even though it remains in the consultation phase and isn’t expected to be complete or enforceable for some time.
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The roads are busy enough without having empty cars driving themselves all over the place all day long!
I thought that autonomous driving wasn't all that far off until I got a Tesla with Autopilot. It's clever, but it illustrates just how far away we are from being able to trust the car to do the driving in everyday situations. I'm more alert when using it than I am when doing everything myself.