Autonomous vehicles will be allowed to hit the road without a driver in the US state of California from 2 April, reports the New York Times. This has created yet another new test site where companies can test autonomous vehicles without the need for a human to be present in the vehicle. The Netherlands also wants to enable such tests.
Companies have long been able to test self-driving vehicles in the state of California. However, an important condition for this is that there must be a human driver in the vehicle at all times that can intervene in case of emergency. This rule will expire on 2 April, allowing vehicles to be driven on the road without a human presence. However, companies are required to be able to remotely control autonomous vehicles so that they can intervene in case of an emergency. In addition, if problems occur, the vehicles must be able to communicate with investigating authorities and other road users.
Arizona is popular test area
Many companies working on autonomous vehicles are based in California. Due to the requirement for a human driver to be present in self-driving cars, many of these companies generally conducted tests of their autonomous vehicles in the state of Arizona, where regulations in this area are less stringent.
One example is Waymo, part of Google's parent company Alphabet. Waymo has been conducting tests of autonomous vehicles in Arizona since October 2017. The company has already transported passengers without a human driver in the cars used for this purpose. Later this year, the company plans to launch a taxi service with autonomous vehicles in Arizona.
Netherlands bets on self-driving vehicles
The Netherlands, too, has long been committed to trials of self-driving vehicles. For instance, the government is working on the Experimentation Act on self-driving cars, a law to allow manufacturers to carry out tests on public roads with autonomous cars without a driver having to be present in the vehicle. Companies wishing to take advantage of this opportunity should be able to apply for a permit to do so in the future.
The bill for the Experimental Self-Driving Cars Act was sent to the House of Representatives by Infrastructure and Water Management Minister Cora van Nieuwenhuizen in late 2017. However, the proposal comes from former Infrastructure and Environment Minister Schultz van Haegen. "With this, we are taking another great step towards the introduction of self-driving vehicles in the Netherlands. Here we have the ideal combination of good, smart infrastructure, smart researchers and an innovative high-tech business community. Together, we can seize the opportunities to make mobility solutions for the future a reality," the then minister said earlier about this bill.
Driver remains responsible
Making such tests possible also requires amending the 1994 Road Traffic Act. In a proposal to amend this law, Minister Van Nieuwenhuizen reports that drivers always remain responsible for a vehicle, even if it drives autonomously. The term driver in this case refers not only to the person actually driving the vehicle, but also to the person remotely monitoring the car if it drives autonomously and without the physical presence of a human driver.
Tests that will soon be conducted under the Self-Driving Cars Experimentation Act may not take place everywhere. The exact locations where tests may be carried out will be assessed and determined in advance by the National Road Transport Agency (RDW) in cooperation with experts such as the Foundation for Scientific Traffic Safety Research (SWOV), the road authority and the police. These parties also lay down conditions to be met by the manufacturer concerned. These include the obligation to take measures to warn other road users that they are facing a self-driving car.
Waiver from RDW
Incidentally, it has already been possible to experiment with autonomous vehicles on public roads in the Netherlands via an exemption from the RDW since July 2015. However, this is subject to the obligation that a human driver must always be present in the vehicle. In addition, the Netherlands has been testing truck platooning, in which trucks are linked together via Wi-Fi, for some time. This technology allows trucks to drive much closer together than was previously possible. The front driver of the resulting 'train' controls his vehicle manually. The drivers in succeeding trucks, however, need to perform fewer driving tasks.
Consulting firm KPMG concluded as recently as January that, of all the 20 countries studied, the Netherlands is best prepared for the arrival of self-driving cars. Contributing factors include the well-constructed and maintained Dutch roads, strong telecom infrastructure and the commitment of the Dutch government.
Author: Wouter Hoeffnagel
Source: New York Times
Source: central government
Source photo: Pixabay / DanielReche
