Driverless or autonomously controlled cars will be allowed to be tested on UK roads.
The Government also aims to remove regulatory barriers so that driverless cars can be used on British roads within the current parliamentary term, the UK Treasury said. Trials will be held on local roads this year, with test drives allowed on motorways and strategic roads for the first time in 2017.
“At a time of great uncertainty in the global economy, Britain must take bold decisions now to ensure it leads the world when it comes to new technologies and infrastructure,” Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne said in a statement.
“Driverless cars could represent the most fundamental change to transport since the invention of the internal combustion engine.”
Highways England will oversee the safety of the programme and said that it will mean some lanes are closed for the trials while they take place but roads will remain open.
