Germany takes step toward autonomous driving on public roads

Germany is keen to catch up in the field of autonomous driving, a technology that could reshape the transport industry but is enormously complex and costly. The biggest advances so far have been made by Waymo LLC (pic) and Cruise LLC in the US as well as Baidu Inc in China. — AP

German lawmakers agreed to allow some driver-less vehicles on public roads, a first step toward enabling autonomous driving in Europe’s biggest economy.

Lawmakers in the lower house of parliament adopted legislation enabling automated driving under some conditions. The bill, approved late Thursday, cites scenarios including small buses and logistics vehicles that can shuttle passengers and goods along pre-determined routes.