Recently, the United Kingdom hopes to take the most critical step in promoting a new round of industrial transformation such as self-driving technology by amending the law.
According to the latest proposed legal changes, if a traffic accident occurs during the driver's choice of the car's autonomous driving mode, the vehicle driver will no longer need to be held accountable, but will be held accountable by the car manufacturer and the software and system developer of the autonomous driving.
Self-Driving Cars Act
The Ukin Law Commission, which advises the legislature on changes to the law, recently released its latest report calling on the government to amend the current law and introduce a new "self-driving car bill". Hopefully, the new bill will make clear provisions for vehicles capable of driving themselves that lead the way in technology, and who will face prosecution if self-driving cars are dangerous to drive or cause accidents.
The move will create a new legal framework that addresses the biggest grey area in the introduction of autonomous driving technology on the road, i.e. who will be held accountable when something goes wrong.
The report presented by the Law Commission will be submitted to Parliament and the Scottish Parliament. It will be up to the Uk, Scotland and Wales Governments to decide whether to accept the Commission's recommendations and introduce legislation to bring them into force.
The most critical step in the autonomous driving industry revolution
Security experts call the report a "critical first step" and if adopted by the UK legislature, it would significantly accelerate the pace of the industry's industrial revolution.
According to the UK government's plan, it is hoped that in the next 12 months, the process of self-driving cars on UK roads can be accelerated.
The UK Law Commission's proposal outlines that when a driver activates the vehicle's self-driving mode, the person sitting in the driving position will no longer be the driving "person in charge" in the legal sense, i.e. if the vehicle is in autopilot mode, it will avoid being prosecuted.
This will also mean that traffic violations such as exceeding speed limits and running red lights will be exempted when the autopilot function is running.
Correspondingly, the manufacturer of the vehicle and the developer of the self-driving technology will become a "self-driving entity" (ADSE) and will be legally responsible for the vehicle's behavior in self-driving mode.
After a vehicle collision, ASDE will be required to work with regulators to provide data to understand who is at fault and where the responsibility lies in order to avoid the recurrence of accidents.
ADSE may also face corresponding legal liabilities if the regulator deems it necessary.
The person in charge of the driving position still bears some legal responsibilities, such as having a driver's license, having insurance and ensuring that passengers wear seat belts and are within the limits of drunk driving.
Crucially, automakers will need to properly market their vehicle technology, ensuring a clear distinction between "assisted driving" capabilities and those systems that allow for autonomous driving, which requires the driver to be involved in driving activities such as adaptive cruise control at all times.
The Uk Law Commission said the clarity of such responsibilities "would help to minimise the risk of accidents caused by the public perception that roads are not required while driving assistance functions are operating".
A car should only be authorized for autonomous driving if it is safe, even if the driver is not monitoring the driving environment, the vehicle, or how it is driven.
The Law Commission also requested additional requirements for vehicles authorized to drive autonomously, i.e. there is no driver at all in the driving position.
In this case, the persons inside the vehicle will be treated as "passengers" for which no one is responsible, and the licensed operator will be responsible for supervising the safety of the entire journey.
In addition, passenger services are required to be accessible, especially for the elderly and disabled.
Commenting on the report, Public Law Commissioner Nicholas Paines QC said: "We have an unprecedented opportunity to promote public acceptance of autonomous vehicles through recommendations on safety assurances and clarification of legal liability. ”
Transport Minister Trudy Harrison added: "The development of autonomous vehicles in the UK has the potential to revolutionize people's mobility, making everyday travel safer, easier and greener. ”
Commenting on the legal advice, AA Association President Edmund King said it was crucial not to encourage drivers to take their hands off the wheel until self-driving car systems were regulated and fail-safe. "It is right for the Law Commission to distinguish between driver assistance functions and autonomous driving and to ensure that driver assistance functions are not marketed as autonomous driving," he added.
When will self-driving cars be legally on the road?
The UK's Transport Department has said it hopes the UK will soon have its first self-driving vehicles equipped with an automated lane keeping system, or ALKS, allowed to drive themselves in the slow lanes of highways with a top speed of 37 miles per hour (60 km/h).
At the same time, there is still a large degree of skepticism about this technology among motorists, who do not believe that fully autonomous cars can coexist with human drivers.
Matthew Avery, chief research strategy officer at Thatcham Research, said the safe introduction of autonomous driving systems is "risky," but the reforms proposed by the Law Commission would be "an important step" in bringing a clear distinction of responsibility to the industry and consumers in the event of an accident.
"In the next 12 months, we are likely to see the first iteration of self-driving cars in the UK."
This includes the use of automated lane keeping systems, or ALKS, on highways in the UK with speed limits of no more than 37 mph. ALKS can self-driving cars and allow drivers to take their hands completely off the wheel. The system is already used in some of the latest cars, including the Mercedes-Benz S-Class.
Matthew Avery added: "Importantly, the Law Commission's report highlights the legal obligations of drivers and the fact that they must understand that their vehicles are not yet fully autonomous: in the near future, its self-driving capabilities will be limited to driving at low speeds on highways. ”
The Legal Commission's recommendation is that when the autonomous driving feature is enabled, the responsible user needs to be ready to take back control of the autopilot system at any time and not allow sleeping or using a mobile phone.
If any form of monitoring is required, such as extreme weather conditions, it should not be considered autonomous driving and existing driving rules should apply.
Jim Holder, responsible editor of consumer car magazine What Car?, said the arrival of the Self-Driving Car Act will be a 'critical first step' in the many legal questions that self-driving cars will have to drive and answer in the future.
"By handing over responsibility for vehicles in 'autonomous driving' mode to manufacturers and software developers, this legislation will be an important incentive for manufacturers to ensure that any product they launch is safe and trustworthy," he said.
"The driving assistance features of new cars have come under legal scrutiny due to the potential to mislead consumers. As manufacturers continue to develop self-driving technology, legislation must keep up. ”
What is ALKS
Designed for use on highways only, ALKS allows vehicles to drive autonomously on a single lane, including steering and speed control and distance to the vehicle in front, returning control of the car to the driver within 10 seconds if a problem is encountered. If the driver does not take action, the vehicle stops.
Vehicles currently on sale in the UK with this technology include Mercedes-Benz's latest Drive Pilot system model.
ALKS technology was judged by the United Nations to be Level 3 automated driving. This means that the driver is not responsible for the vehicle, but must be prepared to maneuver when a warning is issued.
Automakers release new marketing guidelines for autonomous driving
As the UK government wants to push for legal use of the self-driving feature on UK roads as soon as possible, the Association of Car Manufacturers and Traders has issued the latest marketing guidelines to ensure that the technology is recommended to drivers "accurately and responsibly" so that they know if and when the self-driving feature can be used.
The Uk's Transport Department says it hopes that from the right time in 2022, autonomous vehicles equipped with automatic lane keeping systems, or ALKS, can be allowed to drive themselves in the slow lanes of highways at a top speed of 37 miles per hour (60 kilometers per hour).
The guidelines will require automakers to specify the details of their autonomous driving capabilities and need to distinguish between "automatic" and "assisted" driving systems, which require the driver's hands to remain on the steering wheel at all times. Previously, Tesla was criticized for the misleading naming of its assistive technology.
The new guidelines were developed by experts from Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles and supported by road safety groups.
Britain's first self-driving bus hit the road in downtown Cambridge
In May 2021, the UK's first self-driving bus was officially put into trial operation on a busy main road in Cambridge, marking an important milestone in the actual use of autonomous buses, and the first time it has been run with other vehicles and pedestrians.
Three self-driving buses, developed by Auraligo, will depart from Madingley Road Park & Ride around Cambridge University's West Campus, operating a 2-mile route.
After the social distancing distance rule was abolished, each shuttle bus could carry 10 passengers, and passengers participating in the trial would be scheduled through an app.
The pilot project, conducted in collaboration with the Greater Cambridge Partnership and Smart Cambridge, will help explore how autonomous driving technology can be applied to public transportation.
If the test is successful, the driverless bus could be used to connect Cambridge's other research campuses and train stations as well as the "Park & Ride" station.
During the test, safety operators are placed on each bus and are ready for manual control if needed.