Autonomous vehicles take London my storm

Autonomous driving in London took another stride forward with the DRIVEN consortium demonstrating a fleet of self-driving vehicles in the capital.

DRIVEN, a 30-month government-supported project powered by Oxbotica, carried out a week-long demonstration around Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford.

Minister of State at the Department for Transport, George Freeman MP, said, 'Self-driving technology has the scope to revolutionise the way people travel, with potentially profound benefits for road safety, accessibility and convenience. We want to drive the roll-out of self-driving vehicles and continue to support innovators developing this ground-breaking technology. The success of trials like project DRIVEN underpin our Future of Mobility: Urban Strategy, highlighting our ongoing support for innovation, research and the trialling of exciting new technology which cements our position as a global leader in this space.'

Speaking on the significance of the event, DRIVEN programme director and Oxbotica senior vice president, external affairs, Dr Graeme Smith said, 'The completion of the DRIVEN project marks a significant milestone for the future of autonomous vehicles in the UK. Establishing Britain as a world leader for innovative technologies has been at the heart of our mission and we're incredibly proud of the steps we have taken to help make AVs a reality on our roads.'

DRIVEN is made up of a coalition of experts including Oxbotica, Oxford Robotics Institute, Axa XL, Nominet, Telefonica, TRL, RACE, Oxfordshire County Council (OCC) and Transport for London (TfL). The project is adhering fully to the Department for Transport's Code of Practice and Transport for London's (TfL) recently published London-specific guidance for Connected and Autonomous Trials.