Waymo pleads with UK government: no strict rules for autonomous vehicles

Waymo pleads with UK government: no strict rules for autonomous vehicles

London, 7/29/2021

Waymo is lobbying the UK government not to impose strict rules on autonomous vehicles on public roads.

Alphabet’s self-driving subsidiary submitted comments to the U.K. Law Commission as the agency considers how to regulate autonomous cars in the country.

The commission is conducting a three-year consultation on the role of AVs in ride-hailing, public transit and more.

In comments published online, Waymo’s Ben Loewenstein argued that a national framework should not hinder the use of AVs or limit their deployment options

limit them.

The government will initially allow automated lane-keeping systems (ALKS), which keep a car in a lane and allow it to accelerate and brake autonomously. ALKS will be limited to highways with a maximum speed of 60 km/h (37 mph).

The government expects 40% of new cars to be equipped with some type of self-driving system by 2035, creating 38,000 jobs.