What does an autonomous vehicle (AV) trial coming to town mean for the councils “hosting” them? Part of DG Cities’ work on Project Endeavour was to understand what a range of local authorities knew about connected and automated mobility in general, and trials in particular. It’s an important piece of the puzzle and will be critical in fulfilling the project’s aim of accelerating and scaling the deployment of AV services on public roads in cities across the UK. 

What followed our research into local authorities was a bit of a gap analysis: some councils - such as our project partners Oxfordshire County Council (OCC) - are well versed in AV technology and the guidelines which it operates under. In fact, OCC have been partners in several AV projects already. Others, however, had very little exposure to AVs and no clear understanding of the council’s role in a trial.

It was because of this we decided that the production of a high-level, non-technical, guide (aimed primarily at council officers and councillors) was a useful output for Project Endeavour.

The Guide outlines what a local authority can expect as current best practice from a Trialling Organisation (TO) who are intending to use their highways, as well as signposting more detailed documents and links to other Connected and Automated Mobility (CAM) projects for those who want to develop a deeper understanding of the world of CAM.

Endeavour’s second highway trial was in Birmingham, and ahead of that we shared a preview of the Guide for both information and comments:

‘…. we welcome the concept and the potential benefits AVs might bring, but we are concerned about public safety. This guide brings the relevant information together in a way that is easy to understand’.

-  BCC's Principal Infrastructure Development Officer

If you’d like to learn more about the future of transport and what an AV trial might look like in your own community, you can download and read the full Guide here.