Promote the innovative application of driverless cars
"Is there really no test safety officer?"
The staff waved away and the door slowly closed. A few seconds later, this "unmanned vehicle" with both the main driver and the co-driver empty carried the reporter and his party into Qiaoqiao Road, Pudong New Area, Shanghai.
It is located in the sub-center of Jinqiao City. Cars are coming and going on the road. Pedestrians on the roadside are surprised to see that there is no driver in this car, and they quickly take out their mobile phones to take pictures. In the car, the steering wheel rotates by itself, driving in strict accordance with road markings and traffic lights, accelerating, turning and turning around, and driving back to the starting point after about 10 minutes.
"Unmanned vehicles" on the road, how to ensure safety, how to punish violations, and how to deal with accidents … … Faced with a series of problems, Pudong has issued relevant regulations.
"The laws and regulations of Pudong New Area provide legal support for driverless intelligent networked cars." Lin Yu, general manager of Shanghai Jinqiao Intelligent Networked Automobile Development Co., Ltd. said that in Pudong, enterprises have been able to carry out experiments for application scenarios such as driverless taxis, unmanned bus connections, unmanned distribution equipment, and automatic parking for people.
In order to promote the pioneering reform in Pudong, the Standing Committee of the Shanghai Municipal People’s Congress has promulgated 15 laws and regulations of Pudong since July 2021, according to the opinions on the construction of Pudong’s leading area and the legislative authorization given by the National People’s Congress Standing Committee (NPCSC), providing support for Pudong’s bold attempts and breakthroughs.
In February this year, the "Regulations on Promoting Innovative Application of Driverless Intelligent Networked Vehicles in Pudong New Area of Shanghai" came into effect; In March, the relevant implementation rules were implemented, and intelligent networked automobile enterprises can conduct tests and commercial operations in specific areas of Pudong New Area without drivers and test safety officers. The regulations also clarify that enterprises that carry out road test, demonstration application and demonstration operation of driverless intelligent networked vehicles should meet a number of safety requirements, and also stipulate emergency measures that enterprises must take in case of vehicle failure and accident.
"The competition window of automobile intelligence has been opened, and we will promote the industry to become bigger and stronger through legislation." Tang Wenkan, deputy director of the Shanghai Economic and Information Committee, said that legal protection can effectively boost industry confidence and attract leading enterprises. Upstream and downstream enterprises in the industrial chain are willing to increase their layout in Shanghai and further enhance the technological innovation and industrial competitiveness of Shanghai Intelligent Networked Automobile.
Shanghai Pudong Jinqiao Intelligent Networked Automobile Test Demonstration Zone is an open test road for self-driving cars in the central city of a super-large city in China, with a mileage of 29.3 kilometers in the first phase.
In March this year, 14 intelligent networked automobile-related enterprises signed contracts to settle in Jinqiao, Zhangjiang and other areas in Pudong, and many enterprises plan to carry out driverless vehicle tests in Jinqiao. "The first batch of test notices were issued to four companies, and many companies are applying." Lin Yu said.
Shanghai wrapping technology co., ltd is one of the first enterprises to test vehicles here. Lin Tai, the company’s vice president, said: "Pudong has admitted at the legislative level that intelligent networked vehicles can enter the open road as legal traffic participants, so that enterprise product research and development has a better testing ground."
"The automobile industry in Jinqiao is very concentrated, including new energy vehicles, intelligent networked vehicles and traditional vehicles, covering the whole chain of design, R&D and manufacturing, but the future cars are very different from traditional cars." Yan Junjie, deputy director of Jinqiao Administration Bureau of Shanghai Free Trade Zone, said that according to the industrial development trend, it will continuously meet the needs of industrial innovation and application, promote the construction of relevant public service platforms and characteristic application scenarios, enhance the digital management and service capabilities of the demonstration area, and let the "future car" enter the daily life of citizens safely and efficiently.