UK Will Have Driverless Cars By 2021

Recently, March 2018, the UK announced a three-year regulatory review to “pave the way for self-driving cars”. In 2021 the UK government intends the country to be well on its way to a driverless future.

This follows the budget, in November, when the government announced a tranche of funding for technology innovations, including AI and driverless cars, and said it wants to establish a looser framework for testing self-driving vehicles “without a safety operator” with the stated aim of getting driverless cars on the roads by 2021.

The law review meshes with that goal, though the government is clearly giving itself a very tight timetable for resolving regulatory complications and passing the necessary legislation.

The myriad technological challenges of ensuring autonomous vehicles can operate safety and efficiently in all weather conditions are really just one portion of the challenge here.

Other major barriers include things like public acceptance of self-driving technology, and liability and insurance complications that arise once you remove human drivers from the mix, raising questions like how do you apportion blame when something goes wrong?

But the law review, which will be jointly carried out by the Law Commission of England and Wales and the Scottish Law Commission, is intended to grapple with exactly these issues.

Among the questions to be reviewed and, says the government, answered are:

  • who is the ‘driver’ or responsible person, as appropriate?
  • how to allocate civil and criminal responsibility where there is some shared control in a human-machine interface?
  • the role of automated vehicles within public transport networks and emerging platforms for on-demand passenger transport, car sharing and new business models providing mobility as a service?
  • whether there is a need for new criminal offences to deal with novel types of conduct and interference?
  • what is the impact on other road users and how they can be protected from risk?

Commenting in a statement, roads minister, Jesse Norman said: “The UK is a world leader for self-driving vehicle research and development, and this work marks an important milestone in our continued commitment to the technology.

“With driving technology advancing at an unprecedented rate, it is important that our laws and regulations keep pace so that the UK can remain one of the world leaders in this field.”

Law commissioner Nicholas Paines QS, added: “British roads are already among the safest in the world and automated vehicles have the potential to make them even safer. Provided our laws are ready for them.

“We’ll now start consulting widely on how the law should work with this new technology and develop reforms which enable the use of self-driving vehicles in the years to come.”

“Automated vehicles could have a big impact on the way we live and work so it’s important that, UK-wide, we have a legal system which can accommodate them,” said Scottish law commissioner, Caroline Drummond, in another statement.

Norman announced the review during a visit to the GATEway driverless car project in Greenwich, which last year piloted an autonomous shuttle pod for ferrying people along a short pedestrian and cycle path in the London region.

The project has continued to run autonomous tests but is now entering its final phase which the government says will involve a fleet of automated pods providing a shuttle service around the Greenwich Peninsula, aimed at understanding public acceptance of, and attitudes towards, self-driving vehicles.

Also commenting on the law review in a statement, Rob Wallis, CEO of TRL, the company behind the GATEway project, said: “Regulation, safety standards and vehicle insurance models all have a key part to play in enabling change, whilst giving society confidence that these new products and services can be introduced safely.”

The review forms part of the government’s push to encourage mobility innovations as set out in its Industrial Strategy, which it says is aimed at boosting the UK’s long term productivity and the earning power of citizens.

So presumably the government’s long term vision for truckers, cabbies and private hire vehicle drivers is for them to shift gears into higher tech careers.

In the Future of Mobility Grand Challenge, one of several the Industrial Strategy sets out,  to “put the UK at the forefront of the industries of the future”, the government writes that it wants to “look for opportunities to improve customers’ experience, drive efficiency and enable people to move around more freely”.

“The UK’s road and rail network could dramatically reduce carbon emissions and other pollutants, congestion could be reduced through higher-density use of road space enabled by automated vehicles, and mobility could be available when we want it, where we want it and how we want it,” it adds.

Techcrunch

You Might Also Read: 

Autonomous Cars Hit The Road In California:

Risky Business - Going Driverless In Moscow:

 

« How AI Has Conquered Democracy
Millennials More Likely To Fall Victim To Cybercrime »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Check Point

Directory of Suppliers

XYPRO Technology

XYPRO Technology

XYPRO is the market leader in HPE Non-Stop Security, Risk Management and Compliance.

Authentic8

Authentic8

Authentic8 transforms how organizations secure and control the use of the web with Silo, its patented cloud browser.

The PC Support Group

The PC Support Group

A partnership with The PC Support Group delivers improved productivity, reduced costs and protects your business through exceptional IT, telecoms and cybersecurity services.

Resecurity

Resecurity

Resecurity is a cybersecurity company that delivers a unified platform for endpoint protection, risk management, and cyber threat intelligence.

NordLayer

NordLayer

NordLayer is an adaptive network access security solution for modern businesses — from the world’s most trusted cybersecurity brand, Nord Security. 

EC-Council

EC-Council

EC-Council is a member-based organization that certifies individuals in various e-business and information security skills.

UZCERT

UZCERT

UZCERT is the national Computer Emergency Response Team for Uzbekistan.

HelseCERT

HelseCERT

HelseCERT is the health and care sector's national information security center for Norway.

Terranova Security

Terranova Security

Terranova is dedicated to providing information security awareness programs customized to your internal policies and procedures.

Logsign

Logsign

Logsign is a Security Orchestration, Automation and Response (SOAR) platform with next-gen Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) solution.

ECOS Technology

ECOS Technology

ECOS Technology specializes in the development and sale of IT solutions for high-security remote access as well as the management of certificates and smart cards.

Araxxe

Araxxe

Araxxe delivers Revenue Assurance, End-to-End Billing Verification and Interconnect Fraud Detection solutions to communication companies worldwide.

Panorays

Panorays

Panorays automates third-party security lifecycle management. It is a SaaS-based platform, with no installation needed.

Partnership for Conflict, Crime and Security Research (PaCCS)

Partnership for Conflict, Crime and Security Research (PaCCS)

PaCCS delivers high quality and cutting edge research to improve our understanding of current and future global security challenges in areas including cybersecurity.

Infopercept Consulting

Infopercept Consulting

Infopercept is a leading cybersecurity company in India, providing a critical layer of security to protect business information, infrastructure & assets across the organization.

Infinite Ranges

Infinite Ranges

Infinite Ranges delivers secure, comprehensive digital solutions by connecting experts with the best products and services for the digital age.

KYND

KYND

KYND has created pioneering cyber risk technology that makes assessing, understanding, and managing business cyber risks easier and quicker than ever before.

ASPIA InfoTech

ASPIA InfoTech

ASPIA Infotech is a leading Information and cybersecurity organization focused on innovative approaches to avert targeted attacks.

Bleach Cyber

Bleach Cyber

Bleach Cyber helps small businesses with an affordable and user-friendly solution for managing cloud security.

eTech S.C.

eTech S.C.

eTech specialize in a broad range of technology solutions, including software development, cybersecurity, infrastructure, and IT outsourcing (ITO) services.

Identifly

Identifly

Identifly is the leading Australian independent identity consultancy and partner in Australia, helping enterprises implement large scale identity security projects fast.