The U.K. government has announced a planned effort to ensure widespread adoption of self-driving cars by 2025, a roadmap that will help the U.K. government tap into the burgeoning market for autonomous vehicles.
To achieve its goals, the U.K. government will speed up its efforts through funding and legislation, with a £100 million funding package including £35 million for security research, which would feed into new legislation to come into force by 2025.
“The legislation would state manufacturers are responsible for the vehicle’s actions when self-driving, meaning a human driver would not be liable for incidents related to driving while the vehicle is in control of driving,” a government statement said.
The mass deployment of self-driving vehicles will help the U.K. government creates 38,000 new jobs.
“We want the U.K. to be at the forefront of developing and using this fantastic technology and that is why we are investing millions in vital research into safety and setting the legislation to ensure we gain the full benefits that this technology promises,” said Transport Secretary Grant Shapps.
The massive rollout of self-driving vehicles includes public transport and delivery vehicles.
The sources for this piece include an article in Reuters.