Government weighs-up publication of autonomous vehicle ‘near miss’ incident data ahead of commercial rollout
- Perry Richardson
- 1 minute ago
- 2 min read
The Department for Transport (DfT) is considering whether to publish incident and near-miss data from autonomous vehicle trials, as ministers prepare for the transition from testing to commercial deployment.
In a written parliamentary answer, Transport Minister Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill said data related to incidents from automated vehicle trials operating with a safety driver are captured under a standard incident reporting framework. That information is regularly published by the Department.
The response followed a question from Labour peer Lord Berkeley, who asked whether companies conducting autonomous vehicle trials are required to publish incident and near-miss data, and whether the Government plans to mandate such disclosure before commercial services are permitted.
Lord Hendy confirmed that companies seeking to operate commercial pilot schemes will be subject to mandated reporting requirements. These reports will initially be submitted directly to the Department for Transport. He added that the Department is considering how such information may be published in future.
Department for Transport says trial incident reports are collected centrally as ministers consider transparency requirements for future commercial pilots
The statement provides the clearest indication to date that incident transparency will form part of the regulatory architecture for automated vehicle deployment in the UK, although no firm commitment has yet been made on public disclosure. It remains unclear whether near-miss data will be included in any future publication regime or whether reporting will be limited to defined safety incidents.
For insurers and local licensing authorities, access to consistent and comparable safety data is likely to be central to risk modelling and operational planning. Commercial pilots are expected to mark a shift from controlled trials with onboard safety drivers to more scalable service models, potentially including remote supervision.
Lord Hendy said: “Data related to incidents from automated vehicle trials with a safety driver would be captured under standard incident report that the Department for Transport regularly publishes.
“Companies wishing to apply to operate commercial pilots will have to comply with mandated reporting requirements. These reports will initially be submitted to the Department. The Department is considering approaches around the publication of this information.”
