Secretary for Transport and Logistics Lam Sai-hung today began his visit to Hangzhou to meet local government officials and learn about the city’s smart mobility development.

In the morning, Mr Lam met representatives of the Hangzhou Transportation Bureau, Hangzhou Municipal Bureau of Economy & Informatization and Hangzhou Traffic Police to understand their latest transport policies and relevant regulatory work in traffic management.

They also exchanged views on the trending autonomous vehicles and its associated challenges.

Mr Lam then visited Antu Technology Innovation (Hangzhou) Co. to learn about the development of intelligent connected vehicles rental services.

While there, the transport chief took a ride on an autonomous vehicle from Binjiang District to Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport, the first of its kind in Hangzhou being tested on open roads with the aim of gaining first-hand experience of the performance of autonomous vehicles under different scenarios.

He noted that the Smart Mobility Roadmap for Hong Kong and the Smart City Blueprint for Hong Kong 2.0 provide a vision to realise the trials and use of autonomous vehicles on public roads in Hong Kong.

“The Transport & Logistics Bureau, together with the Transport Department, will soon propose legislative amendments to the Legislative Council for establishing a flexible regulatory framework to cope with the evolving autonomous driving technology.

“The successful experience of the Mainland and other overseas cities will be conducive to the long-term development of autonomous vehicles in Hong Kong," Mr Lam added.

Upon arrival at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport, Mr Lam received a briefing by representatives of the Airport Authority Hong Kong on the latest development at the airport.

The authority has been proactively sharing experience and co-operating with Mainland airports based on the principle of "what the country needs, and what Hong Kong is good at".

Apart from emphasising that the authority has participated in the operation and management of Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport since 2006, the briefing pointed out that the authority now holds 35% shares of the airport, which is an example of how Hong Kong and Mainland cities can leverage their respective strengths on a complementary principle.

Mr Lam will return to Hong Kong in the evening, concluding his four-day visit to Shanghai and Hangzhou.