Members of the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee visited the GATEway Project in Greenwich as part of its ongoing inquiry into autonomous vehicles.

The GATEway Project is one of the research and development projects for autonomous vehicles in the UK.

The focus of the inquiry by the House of Lords committee is to explore the potential uses and benefits of autonomous vehicles and the transition path required for the co-existence of self-driving and conventional road vehicles. The committee has heard evidence from government officials, academics and industry experts about how driverless vehicles will fit into the wider transport strategy. It is also exploring the socioeconomic aspects of the deployment of autonomous cars.

The House of Lords committee members has the opportunity to see and to test this new technology for themselves in Greenwich. The Peers witnessed the final testing of the first GATEway shuttle vehicle ahead of public road trials and experienced the Transport Research Laboratory’s portable driving simulator (the MiniDigiSim). The members of the committee were also taken for a ride in the Geni, the development vehicle of GATEway partner Oxbotica, that navigates using Selenium, Oxbotica’s autonomous operating system.

The Committee’s Chairman, Lord Selborne, said: “Over the course of our inquiry we have heard compelling evidence on how autonomous vehicles can benefit society and the economy. However, if we are to realistically see these cars on UK roads in the near future, research and investment is vital. Projects such as GATEway ensure the roads are ready for driverless vehicles as well as the efficient integration of sophisticated automated transport systems into complex real world environments.”
 
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