An industry report on attitudes of business decision
makers to the future of Connected Autonomous Vehicles
(CAVs) in the UK
ANTICIPATING AUTONOMOUS:
THE UK'S
DRIVERLESS
FUTURE
As humans, we have been developing new
forms of transport to improve the way we travel
and work since Mesopotamian times and the
earliest recorded use of horse-drawn carts in
1900 BC.
Fast-forward almost 4,000 years and there
are 38.2 million vehicles licensed for use on
the roads in Great Britain alone, 31.5 million
of which are cars1. We are truly a nation of
journey makers.
In the last 150 years, the pace of change in
transport has accelerated beyond belief. From
the 1885 invention of the first ever automobile
to now where driverless car technology
promises to usher in the next transport
revolution.
Driverless cars or connected autonomous
vehicles (CAVs), as this report refers to them,
will bring seismic changes to the UK as a
whole.
CAVs are set to play a crucial role in the
future of the UK's society and economy.
From improving the safety of British roads for
passengers and pedestrians to liberating those
who are less able to travel.
The Department for Transport is aiming for
the first deployments of CAVs in the UK by
20212 and major car manufacturers and
technology companies have begun trialling
driverless prototype cars. There is both a
public and private sector appetite for making
this autonomous future a reality.
So, what are the next steps for making CAVs
commercially available in the UK? When will
road-users be able to buy one? What benefits
can the UK public expect?
This report, commissioned by the Smart
Mobility Living Lab: London (SMLL), sets out to
tackle these key questions, based on research
which surveyed 250 senior decision makers
from across the transporting, technology and
automotive industries.

1 https://www.racfoundation.org/motoring-faqs/mobility#a1
2 https://www.gov.uk/government/news/self-parking-cars-could-be-on-a-street-near-you-
by-2021
FOREWORD
Connected autonomous vehicles (CAVs) and
the anticipated societal benefits they will bring
will become a reality within the next decade.
That's the over-riding feeling amongst the
transport and technology industry leaders
we surveyed as part of this study of opinions
about CAVs in the UK.
Of the decision makers surveyed, almost two-
thirds (65%) are confident that CAVs will be
made available on UK roads in the next five
years. This isn't to say that those respondents
think all cars will be driverless within this
timescale, but it is a vote of confidence in the
UK's ability to take CAVs from their formative
stages to a commercially viable method of
transport and convince enough early adopters
to use them.
Building on this expectation, a perception
exists that progress has been slower than
initially anticipated. Almost half (49%) said that
they expected CAVs to already be available
for use in the UK, suggesting that while many
do not consider the barriers to progress to
be impassable, further work must be done to
achieve this. This may also be indicative of a
general lack of appreciation about the amount
of time it takes to bring new technologies
to market.
Industry leaders are also clear that the
benefits that CAVs will bring to the UK are well
worth pursuing. The principal benefit driving
CAVs forward is safety. Two-thirds (67%) of
respondents believe CAVs will make British
roads safer, and almost half (46%) cited safety
as the main benefit that CAVs will bring when
they are effectively rolled out.
Beyond safety, they will deliver a future of
mobility that is intelligent, joined-up and
positively affects the lives of British people
and businesses in many ways. Almost half
(49%) agreed that CAVs will make elderly
and disabled people more mobile. This is
a welcome development considering that
people are living longer, with many finding
it increasingly difficult to get around as they
age. For people with physical disabilities,
CAVs could open doors to lifestyle and career
choices from an earlier age which would
previously have been challenging for them
to pursue.
These broader societal benefits also translate
into commercial opportunities. More than
seven in ten (72%) of respondents were
unconcerned about a lack of market need
holding back the rollout of CAVs. In economic
terms, 62% agreed that CAVs would have a
positive impact on UK GDP.
These findings point towards anticipation
and expectation rather than confusion and
trepidation. There is a clear mandate for
making CAVs commercially available in the
UK over the next five years and willingness
from transport, automotive and technology
organisations to set about the task.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
AGREED THAT CAVS
WOULD HAVE A
POSITIVE IMPACT ON
UK GDP.
62%
Safety is naturally a key concern for CAV
users, regulators and manufacturers. For
consumers, attitudes towards the safety of
CAVs are on a positive trajectory. Deloitte's
2018 Global Automotive Consumer Study
found that less than half (49%) believe that
self-driving vehicles will be unsafe, down from
73% in 2017.3
When it comes to leaders from transport,
automotive and technology organisations,
attitudes towards the safety of CAVs are
more positive: only 17% disagreed that CAVs
would make UK roads safer, with two-thirds
(67%) agreeing that they will. 16% declared
themselves unsure on this issue, potentially
due to the lack of real-world deployments
available in the UK on which to base this
response.
Beyond safety, industry leaders are most
excited about the wider role CAVs will play
in British society. These included a range
of advantages on important societal and
economic issues.
Brits already spend more time commuting than
people living and working in other countries.
According to the ONS, the average commute
time in the UK is 54 minutes, while the number
of people commuting for more than an hour
has risen by 31% since 2011.4 CAVs promise
to reduce congestion on UK roads 41% of
respondents believe this by improving traffic
flows and using more of the available space on
the roads by driving closer together.
Over half (51%) of the decision makers
surveyed think freeing up more time for
commuters due to reduced travel time will be
a key benefit. Over a third (37%) agree that
CAVs may help commuters achieve a better
work/life balance, while the majority are unsure
that CAVs will have any impact.
CAVs may well reduce commuting times for
some people, but whether or not a shorter
commuting time has a positive impact on work/
life balance is entirely subjective. Furthermore,
there are many factors which affect work/life
balance besides length of travel to work, such
3 https://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/press-releases/articles/fears-about-the-safety-of-
driverless-cars-diminishing.html
4 https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandem
ployeetypes/methodologies/labourforcesurveylfsqmi
as average working hours, holidays and
job demands.
One finding which does indicate how CAVs
might improve our quality of life is that almost
half (49%) of those surveyed highlighted
increased mobility for elderly and disabled
people as a key benefit. The latest ONS
projections show that in 50 years' time, there
are likely to be an additional 8.6 million people
aged 65 years and over, so the role CAVs play
in terms of increasing opportunity and mobility
for elderly and disabled people is only likely to
increase in importance in years to come.5
Giving people access to the world around them
will not only allow them to enjoy a better quality
of life, it also opens the door to a potentially
untapped demographic for local shops,
businesses and service providers. This is one
of the areas where we can already tangibly
see the point at which CAVs moves from
technological advancement to economic and
social progress.
Those surveyed identified CAVs as having
a role to play in helping the UK and local
governments hit their various emissions
5 https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/age

ing/articles/livinglongerhowourpopulationischangingandwhyitmatters/2018-08-13
BEYOND SAFETY -
The key benefits and impact of CAVs
HIGHLIGHTED INCREASED MOBILITY
FOR ELDERLY AND DISABLED PEOPLE
AS A KEY BENEFIT.
49%
targets. In its fifth carbon budget, the UK has
committed to reducing carbon emissions by
57% of 1990 levels by 2030. Almost three-
quarters (74%) of industry leaders believe
CAVs have a role to play in doing so, with 46%
of those believing they are fundamental to
these goals.
Linking CAVs to reductions in carbon
emissions, as 43% of those surveyed do,
could be based on the assumption that CAVs
will be powered by electricity rather than
traditional internal combustion engines (ICE).
It's important to note this as an interesting
perception, despite the lack of any industry
consensus on the predominant power-train that
CAVs will use. While studies do exist, which
determine CAVs may lead to lower emissions
due to 'platooning', this is not sufficient to
assume that CAVs will register a positive
impact on the environment overall.
Almost a third (30%) of respondents feel the
introduction of CAVs will lead to a reduction
in vehicle ownership. For example, would
a family need multiple vehicles, if the one
vehicle could drop one person off and then
return home to collect other family members?
We cannot directly infer from this finding that
people think this will result in a reduction of the
total number of vehicles on the road. Instead
it simply reflects a belief that the ownership
model for change. Would you need to own a
vehicle if there are driverless cars constantly
available to "taxi" you around? Either way,
this is a crucial finding which hints towards a
dramatic shift in the business model used by
vehicle manufacturers and transport operators.
THINK CAVS NEED TO BE SUBJECTED
TO REAL-WORLD TESTING BEFORE
THEY CAN BE USED ON UK ROADS.
68%
Although the future transport system is likely
to be powered by CAVs, the full impact they
will have on society and the implications of
their rollout are yet to be fully realised or
considered. According to this study, we're still
very much in the formative years of CAVs.
Collaboration between industries, governments
and regulators will be essential in
navigating this final period of development
and eventual implementation.
One of the key questions, is who should be
responsible for this rollout? Car manufacturers
understand that CAVs may change vehicle
ownership models forever and that to ignore
the imminent disruption would be folly. The
technology industry, playing a central role in
the operation of the vehicles, has much to gain
from CAVs being made commercially available.
Whether it's supplying the in-car technologies,
sensors and software, or the digital
infrastructure, urban and rural connectivity and
data management solutions, all parts of the
CAV ecosystem will have to work together for
their deployment to be successful.
When asked where the primary responsibility
for the rollout lies, 43% said with technology
companies, while 41% answered vehicle
manufacturers. While this indicates that
deploying CAVs in the UK must be a cross-
industry collaboration with no primary leader,
there is a clear mandate for the private sector
to set the pace of this rollout. Less than a third
(30%) feel that national government should
take responsibility.
Most leaders in the private sector think
personal cars (32%) will be the first vehicles
to become autonomous, twice as likely as
taxis and buses (16%). From a commercial
perspective this may be because self-driving
personal cars command more consumer
appeal than taxis or buses. This nods towards
private sector organisations leading the way,
although there is a chance that the first CAVs
in the UK will be taxis or buses, rolled out as
part of government programmes to build trust
in the technology. This may be required
before personal CAVs are considered
commercially viable.
Although there is a sense that this rollout
will not be led by national government, one
factor to consider is that public sector bodies
are focused on easing congestion caused by
personal vehicles and instead promote public
transport methods. The impact of autonomous
vehicle technologies on the public transport
experience could be profound in terms of
increasing consistency, efficiency
and satisfaction.
The assumption that CAVs will be led by
technology and automotive organisations
may be linked to the factors which could
delay their rollout in the UK. Investment in
strengthening the UK's digital infrastructure
was flagged (39%) as a key step for making
self-driving cars commercially available in the
next five years. In-vehicle technology (47%)
and roadside technologies (44%) were also
noted as requiring advancement enough to
support a full rollout. Given the lack of real-
world deployments of CAVs in the UK on
which to base this theory, it is understandable
that a perception exists that the necessary
technologies are not ready.
To move the needle on those perceptions,
more successful trials and testing of
autonomous vehicle technologies need to take
place on UK soil especially in complex urban
settings. Collaboration between the technology
industry, vehicle manufacturers and the public
bodies responsible for these infrastructure
upgrades will be crucial for making CAVs a
commercial success.
Rigorous testing is essential in bringing
CAVs to the market
Navigating the interplay between in-car
technology, roadside technology, broader
vehicle infrastructure, data security and
regulation requirements is too complex for any
one developer or industry to solve on its own.
Comprehensive testing, collaborative R&D and
collective regulation development is the only
way for CAVs to become a commercial reality.
Arguably, the least surprising finding of
the study is that 92% of industry decision
makers acknowledge that some form of
testing is required before CAVs can be made
commercially available to UK road-users. More
than two-thirds (68%) think CAVs need to be
CAVS
THE FORMATIVE YEARS:
subjected to rigorous real-world testing before
they can be used on UK roads.
Taking it one step further, 45% think live testing
environments are important. These testing
environments need to involve interaction
between CAVs and human-driven vehicles
as well as pedestrians. A further 39% think
extensive consumer trials must take place
before CAVs will be a commercial reality.
This response indicates that, while generally
the process of testing roadworthiness of
vehicles is entrusted to vehicle manufacturers
and industry bodies, a more involved process
is expected for self-driving vehicles.
Most respondents (84%) agree that the UK
needs its own testing facilities for CAVs. There
are multiple interpretations available as to why
senior industry decision makers feel that the
UK needs its own testing facilities. Consumers
today are, for the most part, prepared to
drive vehicles which were not manufactured
or tested in the UK, and this finding may be
evidence of an assumption that vehicles which
are bought and sold for use in the UK have
been locally tested.
Another interpretation is that people feel that
roadways and road-users in the UK are distinct
enough to require a testing environment
designed specifically for them. There are
unique challenges, even for machines,
which are brought about by different terrains,
transport systems and the behaviour of
other road users. It is possible that there is a
consensus among industry decision makers
that driverless cars demand completely
different local testing protocols than user-
controlled ones.
The research supports the view that city-
based testing facilities can make a positive
contribution towards innovation in driverless
car technologies as well as reassuring
stakeholders from multiple industries and
consumers of their safety and reliability.
BELIEVE CAVS WILL BECOME
AVAILABLE IN THE NEXT DECADE.
84%
Consistent with the generally positive response
to the potential of CAVs being rolled out in
the UK, 70% are confident that CAVs can be
successfully regulated against a standard
something with which almost 50% of CEOs
strongly agree. This consensus is a major vote
of confidence in the ability of UK transport
bodies to successfully regulate the use of
CAVs, ultimately enabling their
commercial use.
However, 39% said that regulatory and
technology standards must be agreed upon
before CAVs can fulfil their commercial
potential, with 41% noting that insurance
policies and legal liability frameworks must be
in place. Insurers and lawyers have been - and
still are - engaged in lengthy debates around
how issues such as liability and compensation
will be regulated should a road-traffic collision
or breakdown involving a CAV occur.
Uniting the industry focus on safety, the
broad need for public and private sector
collaboration, and the essential role of product
and business model testing is the agreed
requirement for exacting standards.
Real-world testing and collaboration is just
as important for regulators as it is for vehicle
manufacturers and technology developers.
Governments and regulators need to know
that the rules they put in place for CAVs do
everything necessary to support growth, foster
innovation and protect consumers.
This survey of senior decision makers from
the transport, technology and automotive
industries has provided a strong indication that
it is a matter of when and not if CAVs become
available in the UK supported by the fact that
only 2% of respondents said that this would not
happen and 84% believe that this will happen
within the next decade.
The next steps are already in motion. The
Smart Mobility Living Lab: London (SMLL),
a co-innovation project led by TRL and a
consortium including Cisco, Transport for
London, DG Cities, Queen Elizabeth Olympic
Park, Cubic, and Loughborough University,
has taken on the challenge of facilitating the
searching for solutions.
SMLL brings together technology, public
infrastructure and transport experts to build a
testbed, located across the Royal Borough of
Greenwich and the Queen Elizabeth Olympic
Park, to offer a uniquely complex urban setting
for developing future transport technologies,
services and business models. The testbed
will become the place to go for advanced
real-world CAV and transport testing where
technology and service providers from related
and unrelated industries can look at the entire
connected transport environment and get their
products and services market-ready, faster.
A UK road network used predominantly by
CAVs isn't five, ten years away, it is almost
upon us. The journey has begun.
ARE YOU WITH US?
Join us at smartmobility.london
@SMLL_London
#JourneyMakers
NEXT STEP? STANDARDS.
Consistent with the generally positive response
to the potential of CAVs being rolled out in
the UK, 70% are confident that CAVs can be
successfully regulated against a standard
something with which almost 50% of CEOs
strongly agree. This consensus is a major vote
of confidence in the ability of UK transport
bodies to successfully regulate the use of
CAVs, ultimately enabling their commercial
use.
However, 39% said that regulatory and
technology standards must be agreed upon
before CAVs can fulfil their commercial
potential, with 41% noting that insurance
policies and legal liability frameworks must be
in place. Insurers and lawyers have been - and
still are - engaged in lengthy debates around
how issues such as liability and compensation
will be regulated should a road-traffic collision
or breakdown involving a CAV occur.
Uniting the industry focus on safety, the
broad need for public and private sector
collaboration, and the essential role of product
and business model testing is the agreed
requirement for exacting standards.
Real-world testing and collaboration is just
as important for regulators as it is for vehicle
manufacturers and technology developers.
Governments and regulators need to know
that the rules they put in place for CAVs do
everything necessary to support growth, foster
innovation and protect consumers.
This survey of senior decision makers from
the transport, technology and automotive
industries has provided a strong indication that
it is a matter of when and not if CAVs become
available in the UK supported by the fact that
only 2% of respondents said that this would not
happen and 84% believe that this will happen
within the next decade.
The next steps are already in motion. The
Smart Mobility Living Lab: London (SMLL),
a co-innovation project led by TRL and a
consortium including Cisco, TfL, DG Cities,
Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Cubic, and
Loughborough University, has taken on the
challenge of facilitating the searching for
solutions.
SMLL brings together technology, public
infrastructure and transport experts to build a
testbed, located across the Royal Borough of
Greenwich and the Queen Elizabeth Olympic
Park, to offer a uniquely complex urban setting
for developing future transport technologies,
services and business models. The testbed
will become the place to go for advanced
real-world CAV and transport testing where
technology and service providers from related
and unrelated industries can look at the entire
connected transport environment and get their
products and services market-ready, faster.
A UK road network used predominantly by
CAVs isn't five, ten years away, it is almost
upon us. The journey has begun.
Are you with us?
Join us at smartmobilty.london.
@SMLL_London
#JourneyMakers
Consistent with the generally positive response to the
potential of CAVs being rolled out in the UK, 70% are
confident that CAVs can be successfully regulated
against a standard something with which almost 50%
of CEOs strongly agree. This consensus is a major
vote of confidence in the ability of UK transport bodies
to successfully regulate the use of CAVs, ultimately
enabling their commercial use.
However, 39% said that regulatory and technology
standards must be agreed upon before CAVs can
fulfil their commercial potential, with 41% noting that
insurance policies and legal liability frameworks must be
in place. Insurers and lawyers have been - and still are
- engaged in lengthy debates around how issues such
as liability and compensation will be regulated should a
road-traffic collision or breakdown involving a CAV occur.
Uniting the industry focus on safety, the broad need for
public and private sector collaboration, and the essential
role of product and business model testing is the agreed
requirement for exacting standards.
Real-world testing and collaboration is just as important
for regulators as it is for vehicle manufacturers and
technology developers. Governments and regulators
need to know that the rules they put in place for CAVs do
everything necessary to support growth, foster innovation
and protect consumers.
Jin us at smartmobility.london
@SMLL_London
#JourneyMakers