April 20 news, according to foreign media reports, the British Transport Department recently proposed a newly revised traffic regulation plan, the new rules allow drivers to watch movies or TV programs in a vehicle-specific autonomous driving state.
According to the plan proposed by the UK Department of Transport, drivers can use the vehicle's autopilot function on closed highways to maintain a single lane and at speeds below 37 mph (about 59.5 km/h) to watch movies or TV shows using the car's on-board screen. However, it should be noted that drivers need to be ready to regain control of the vehicle when prompted to take over, and mobile phones must not be used during autonomous driving.
The regulations also state that if an accident occurs in a vehicle during the process, the insurance company will be financially liable for the accident of the self-driving car, and the driver will not be liable.
In the next step, the Uk side will announce the list of the first batch of vehicles that meet the conditions of "automatic driving", which also puts forward corresponding requirements for car companies with automatic driving and auxiliary driving functions, such as how to upgrade through OTAs to meet the requirements of local laws and regulations for "automatic driving".
At present, including Tesla, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, General Motors, Ford and Volvo and other car companies, all have relatively complete automatic driving technology.
The UK has always been more aggressive in the development of regulations related to automotive autonomous driving. In 2021, the UK passed regulations on self-driving cars driving on open roads and allowed drivers to leave the steering wheel with their hands, simply taking over if necessary. Now, the newly revised new regulations allowing drivers to watch in-car TELEVISION have once again set a precedent.
In fact, just last month, Mercedes-Benz's L3 level autonomous driving was just approved by the relevant Authorities in Germany, allowing "conditional automatic" driving on the highway, and drivers can play mobile phones and browse the web in the state of automatic driving.
Mercedes-Benz's self-driving system, dubbed The Drive Pilot, supports opening on highways in congested conditions where accidents are less than 40 miles (about 64.3 km/h). Officials said that when the Drive Pilot system is turned on, Mercedes-Benz will be responsible for the accident that occurs in the vehicle.
It is reported that this system of Mercedes-Benz will be the first to be installed on the S-class sedan. With the Drive Pilot system turned on, the vehicle takes over driving control and the driver can look at the phone, browse the web, videos, and more. When the Drive Pilot system detects that the road is not suitable for L3 autonomous driving, it will issue an alarm in advance to ask the driver to take over in time.
The revision of high-speed regulations in the United Kingdom and Germany and the introduction of L3 level autonomous driving such as Mercedes-Benz mean that the autonomous driving function of automobiles will soon develop to a new height in terms of laws and regulations other than technical links, which will also continue to promote the continuous breakthrough and innovation of this technology.
After all, in the more than 100 years since the birth of the car, there has not been a single car company or any traffic regulation that allows drivers to distract themselves while driving.