Driverless vehicle testing to be promoted in new legislation in Israel

The draft for the legislation will concern itself with giving the minister the authority to set guidelines on how testing for these vehicles will be conducted.

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
A general view of a Mobileye autonomous driving test vehicle, at the Mobileye headquarters in Jerusalem (photo credit: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun)
A general view of a Mobileye autonomous driving test vehicle, at the Mobileye headquarters in Jerusalem
(photo credit: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun)
The Transportation Ministry is pushing legislation to promote driverless, autonomous vehicles in Israel, according to a statement by the ministry.
This will make Israel one of the first countries in the developed world to have a law that encourages the testing of autonomous vehicles, the statement said.
The legislation, promoted by Transportation Minister Miri Regev, will allow for an increase in the amount of testing for these autonomous vehicles, as well as encouraging companies to establish research and development centers for them.
The draft for the legislation will concern itself with giving the minister the authority to set guidelines on how testing for these vehicles will be conducted, including with passengers, to advance these new technologies.
Following these experiments, future legislation will allow for the use of autonomous vehicles for other aspects of daily life, including public transportation and carpool services.
Autonomous vehicles have been tested in Israel in recent years, but they always had a "control driver" behind the wheel in case there was a need for human intervention. Due to the advancement of technology, the ministry has decided to promote completely driverless testing.
"Promotion of this legislation is a significant step which allows performing advanced testing in autonomous vehicles," Regev said. "This is an essential step, the success of which will allow, in the near future, the expansion of public transportation options, as well as advancing Israel's position as a superpower in this dynamic field."


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