Secretary for Transport & Logistics Mable Chan today said she would expect the application of autonomous vehicles (AV) in selected communities within the next one to two years based on the current progress of testing.

Ms Chan told lawmakers that since a new regulatory regime allowing wider and more flexible trials of AVs on the road was rolled out last year, the testing and application of AVs in Hong Kong are enhancing speed and efficiency.

She said the Transport Department has issued two pilot licences to allow 12 AVs to be tested in North Lantau and the West Kowloon Cultural District (WKCD) respectively.

The transport chief noted that significant progress has been made in the trial in North Lantau since its commencement from the end of last year and various breakthroughs have been achieved.

These include the scale of the trial being expanded from a single vehicle to 10 vehicles operating simultaneously in order to collect the data of multiple vehicles running in parallel; carrying passengers on specified routes after a safety assessment; conducting a trial on more complex roads; expanding current trial routes at Airport Island with plans to conduct a trial in Tung Chung in the future simultaneously; and allowing the speed limit to be increased to 50km per hour in accordance with the trial route's maximum speed limit. 

The project applicant also plans to expand the trial to Cyberport, Ms Chan added.

Another project, located at the WKCD, will trial autonomous light buses equipped with an autonomous driving system that follows Hong Kong's left-handed traffic rule.

Ms Chan noted that upon completion of the entire system development and when the system has been proven safe to operate, trials with passengers will be carried out on public roads in the WKCD.

Looking forward, the Government will consolidate the experience gained from various projects, refine technical standards and share research outcomes with the industry to promote the development of AVs with safety as its guiding principle.