Memorandum for comments: automation in road transport requires legislative amendments

The Ministry of Transport and Communications is requesting comments on a memorandum assessing legislative amendments required for road transport automation in Finland. Comments on the memorandum can be submitted until 17 May 2024.

The memorandum proposes legislative amendments that would enable the use of automated vehicles on public roads in Finland yet maintain a high level of road safety. The memorandum contains the main policy lines of the preliminary legislative proposals. Legislative drafting will continue based on feedback from the memorandum.

At present, a vehicle equipped with an automated driving system that is type approved in the EU may be used on public roads in Finland. However, the vehicle must have a driver who is responsible for the vehicle’s behaviour in traffic.

The memorandum was prompted by the amendments to the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic. The amendments make it possible to introduce national regulation on the use of automated vehicles on public roads.

Changes needed to driver’s responsibilities

The rules on the use of vehicles in traffic should be reformed to allow vehicles to be driven by an automated driving system (ADS) instead of a human driver. It would be essential to amend the sanctions for drivers so that in future, sanctions would be imposed on the organisation behind the ADS.

The memorandum’s proposals aim at ensuring road safety as automated driving systems become more common. Automation also promotes new business opportunities and the efficiency and sustainability of the transport system.

Finland aims to be among the pioneers in the development of transport automation and digitalisation and to actively influence the development of international regulation. A good example is the Finnish experimentation legislation, which has enabled automation experiments in winter conditions, public transport and research projects.

Next steps

Comments on the memorandum can be submitted until 17 May 2024. All organisations and private individuals may submit comments online at www.lausuntopalvelu.fi.

Officials at the Ministry will continue legislative drafting based on feedback from the consultation round. The aim is to submit the government proposal to Parliament during the autumn session 2025.

Inquiries

Kirsi Miettinen, Senior Ministerial Adviser, Legislative Affairs, kirsi.miettinen(at)gov.fi, tel. +358 295 342 570

Atte Riihelä, Senior Specialist, atte.riihela(at)gov.fi, tel. +358 295 342 181