The benefits of autonomous vehicles (AVs) are widely acknowledged, but there are concerns about the extent of these benefits and AV risks and unintended consequences. In this article, we first examine AVs and different categories of the technological risks associated with them. We then explore strategies that can be adopted to address these risks, and explore emerging responses by governments for addressing AV risks. Our analyses reveal that, thus far, governments have in most instances avoided stringent measures in order to promote AV developments and the majority of responses are non-binding and focus on creating councils or working groups to better explore AV implications. The US has been active in introducing legislations to address issues related to privacy and cybersecurity. The UK and Germany, in particular, have enacted laws to address liability issues; other countries mostly acknowledge these issues, but have yet to implement specific strategies. To address privacy and cybersecurity risks strategies ranging from introduction or amendment of non-AV specific legislation to creating working groups have been adopted. Much less attention has been paid to issues such as environmental and employment risks, although a few governments have begun programmes to retrain workers who might be negatively   affected. 

Introduction

Autonomous vehicles (AVs) develop new paths for mobility and are acknowledged to have economic and societal benefits, but there are concerns regarding the extent of their benefits and their unintended consequences. As with all new technologies, appropriate governance strategies can help maximise the potential benefits associated with the rapid development of AVs and minimise the risks often associated with technological disruption and negative and/or unintended consequences. The concern, however, remains about the capacity of governments in the timely management of wider societal implications.  Since Google released its first fleet of AVs in 2010 developments in AV technology have accelerated significantly. Hillier, Wright, and Damen estimate that auto companies will roll out AVs in the market by 2020 and AVs are expected to occupy 25% of the global market by 2040 . Most scholarly work has been directed towards the effects of AVs. For instance, Milakis, Snelder, van Arem, Homem de Almeida Correia, and van Wee estimate the impact of AVs on transport demand and energy consumption respectively, while Collingwood and Glancy explore the impact of AVs on privacy issues. There is limited country-specific literature regarding the policy implications of AVs and governance responses to AVs. Literature reviews have been conducted for Australia and the United Kingdom has identified regulatory gaps in the United States (US) federal government’s approach to AV-related safety risks, proposing possible risk management strategies. These studies, however, do not explicitly analyse government strategies and efforts as part of a broader framework.

AV risks and governance strategies