Uber announced on Tuesday that it will begin running driverless cars in London next year as part of a UK government pilot programme aimed at supporting an innovative sector driven by the development of artificial intelligence.
According to a plan outlined by the British Department for Transport on Tuesday, autonomous taxis and shuttle services will be trialed in England from next year. These pilot projects will initially be tested on a “small scale” beginning in the Spring of 2026, with the possibility of wider rollouts in 2027, the ministry said in a statement.
Eager to position the country as a leader in artificial intelligence —a critical technology for developing autonomous vehicles — the UK government plans to legislate in 2027 to permit the wider deployment of this mode of transport.
The projects authorised for next year will be the first not requiring a driver behind the wheel, the government specified.
Initially, a driver will be present in the autonomous vehicles operated by Uber in London, in partnership with Wayve, before a shift to fully driverless cars is made.
The Department for Transport highlighted potential safety benefits and accident reductions, noting that human errors “contribute to 88% of road collisions.”
Autonomous taxi services already operate in the United States and especially in China.
However, at the end of 2024, the US giant General Motors announced the cessation of its Cruise subsidiary’s driverless taxi operations in the US, following a serious accident at the end of 2023 when one of its vehicles ran over a pedestrian struck by a driver-operated vehicle.
