The government-funded autonomous vehicle project DRIVEN has successfully completed a trial of driving in London’s urban environment.
The jointly-funded £13.6m programme gave a week-long demonstration around the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford, navigating everyday conditions without a driver in control of the wheel.
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Powered by Oxbotica’s autonomous software, the cars are designed to operate smoothly, safely and legally in real-life situations on typical public roads across Europe. The programme uses a range of technical experts from local authority planning, insurance, cyber security and data trading.
Companies involved with the project include: Oxbotica, Oxford Robotics Institute, Axa XL, Nominet, Telefonica, TRL, RACE, Oxfordshire County Council and Transport for London.
George Freeman, minister of state at the Department for Transport, 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 underpins 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.”
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By GlobalDataGraeme Smith, DRIVEN programme director and Oxbotica senior vice president, added: “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.
