The UK government’s future of transport minister, George Freeman, has announced the launch of a new connected and autonomous vehicle (CAV) safety regime called CAV PASS.
To ensure self-driving vehicles are safe and secure by design and minimise any defects ahead of their testing, sale and wider deployment on UK roads, the government is developing an assurance system that utilises expertise in vehicle safety and cyber security within government, industry and academia.
It will first focus on enabling the advanced trialling of self-driving vehicles, and aims to eventually help assure the safety and security of these vehicles for their mainstream sale and use.
Such advanced trials may include those without a human operator in the loop at all times, or the assessment of novel vehicle types such as pods and shuttles.
Freeman made the announcement at the Cenex-Low Carbon Vehicle conference as he officially opened the Autonomous Village self-driving vehicle test facility at Millbrook Proving Ground in Bedfordshire.
Featuring 70km (43 miles) of secure test tracks, a private mobile network and a simulator suite, the Autonomous Village will form part of a network of self-driving vehicle test facilities across the UK, co-ordinated by automated vehicle company Zenzic.
The new ground will allow developers to safely challenge systems and collect data, to help fine-tune software, sensors, 5G telecommunications and cyber security systems.
“Self-driving vehicles can offer significant rewards for the UK’s economy, road safety and accessibility,” said Freeman. “We are determined to lead in the testing and development of safe autonomous transport.
“This is new terrain, and with our national expertise the UK is well-placed to blaze the trail globally by developing a global benchmark for assuring the safety and security of this exciting technology.”
