China Herald: Beijing rules as first on self-driving cars

Mark Schaub

Getting rid of legal barriers is key for using innovation in real life, and Beijing approved the first regulations in China on self-driving cars, writes lawyer Mark Schaub at the China Law Insight. He elaborates on the details. "We expect more regions to follow Beijing’s lead and compete for innovation in this key sector," he adds.

Mark Schaub:

On 15 December 2017, Beijing Municipal Commission of Transport, Beijing Traffic Management Bureau and Beijing Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology jointly issued the Beijing Guidance on Accelerating Road Testing for Self-driving Vehicles (Trial) and Beijing Implementing Rules for Managing Road Testing for Self-driving Vehicles (Trial) (collectively “Regulations”)[1].

While the Regulations only apply to testing of autonomous vehicles in Beijing, this is something of a milestone as it is the first regulation of its kind in China.

The Regulations may have been spurred in part by Baidu CEO Li Yanhong’s test drive of Baidu’s autonomous vehicle on public roads in July 2017. At the time this test drive was the cause of some controversy as it was wholly unregulated.

A review of the Regulations show that the legislators have borrowed concepts of good practice from leading jurisdictions including the United States, Germany and Australia...

The release of the Regulations is a concrete step in China’s regulation on road testing of autonomous vehicles. This will no doubt boost the development of autonomous vehicles and speed the commercialization of autonomous vehicles in China. The Regulations also facilitate China’s autonomous vehicle road testing. We expect more regions to follow Beijing’s lead and compete for innovation in this key sector.

More at the China Law Insight

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