Autonomous vehicles on UK public roads

The first use of fully connected and autonomous vehicles (CAV) on public roads is set to take place in Oxfordshire, following the announcement of £2.5 million of government funding into a trial project.

The 30-month MultiCAV project will trial self-driving vehicles in and around Milton Park, the large, high-tech business and science hub near Didcot. The vehicles will travel between private roads at Milton Park and the public roads that link the site with nearby transport services.

Despite being relatively close to Didcot Parkway station, most travel to and from Milton Park is currently made in private vehicles. With the site set to expand in the coming years, the MultiCAV consortium is building on the work already underway to provide the park with long-term, safe sustainable transport. Commuters to the site will be able to connect with the self-driving pods from local transport services, while booking and paying for their trip in one easy process. It is hoped that by the end of the trial up to 50% of private vehicle journeys within the business park will switch to using the shared, electric-powered pods.

https://ciltuk.org.uk/News/Government-green-lights-first-use-of-autonomous-vehicles-on-UK-roads