The UK government has launched a £40m competition to fund projects aimed at introducing the latest developments in autonomous commercial vehicles to the markets.
The competition dubbed ‘Commercialising Connected and Automated Mobility’ will award grants towards the roll out of commercial use self-driving vehicles across the country from 2025.
It will help bring together firms and investors so that sustainable business models are launched nationally and exported around the world, said the UK government.
According to the government, the different types of self-driving vehicles that could be deployed are delivery vans, shuttles, passenger buses, and pods. Vehicles that transport people and move containers at shipping ports and luggage at airports will also be included in the competition.
UK Minister for Investment Lord Grimstone said: “Self-driving vehicles have the potential to revolutionise people’s lives, whether its by helping to better connect people who rely on public transport with jobs, local shops, and vital services, or by making it easier for those who have mobility issues to order and access services conveniently.
“This funding will help unlock the incredible potential of this new and growing industry, building on the continued development of self-driving technology, attracting investment and helping make our transport cleaner, safer and more efficient.”
The UK government claimed that the funding competition will strengthen its reputation as a worldwide leader in autonomous vehicle technology. It will also unlock a new industry potentially worth £42bn to the British economy by 2035, while possibly generating 38,000 new skilled jobs.
UK Transport Minister Trudy Harrison said: “We know that self-driving vehicles have the potential to revolutionise the way we travel, making our future journeys cleaner, easier and more reliable. But our absolute priority is harnessing the technology to improve road safety.
“With around 88% of road collisions currently caused by human error, this funding will drive the introduction of new technology to improve travel for all, while boosting economic growth and highly skilled jobs across the nation.”
The Commercialising Connected and Automated Mobility competition will be run by the Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles (CCAV). Applications for the competition closes on 20 July 2022.
The funding competition has two strands with the first being ‘Commercialising Connected and Automated Mobility: Deployments’.
The second strand, which is Commercialising Connected and Automated Mobility: Mass Transit will award £1.5m in funding. This is for studying and exploring the use of self-driving vehicles as a means of public transport that could offer an alternative to mass transit systems.
