• orm>

    Toward a driverless future with Commissioner Bienkowska

    10 December 2015

    On 10 December, Elżbieta Bieńkowska, European Commissioner for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, took a part in the presentation of a fully autonomous car at Munich airport. The event was designed to highlight the role that driverless cars could play in enabling safer and more efficient vehicles, while also addressing legislative and consumer challenges posed by this new technology.

    Elżbieta Bieńkowska said: “Driverless cars represent a new opportunity for the mobility of Europeans and the competitiveness of European automotive industry. However, there must be careful thought into creating the best framework as this technology becomes a reality and users must be at the heart of this deployment.”

    The event coincided with the launch of the new European Commission high level group for the automotive sector bringing together all relevant stakeholders: ‘GEAR 2030’. GEAR 2030 aims to develop recommendations to reinforce the competitiveness and to tackle the main challenges the automotive sector will face in the next 10 years. Automation, in particular, is a major trend that will be looked at by GEAR 2030 as it will enable for safer and more efficient vehicles, therefore strengthening the sector. Legislative hurdles, infrastructure investments and product liability issues, to name a few, are all key aspects that need settling before the sector is able to put autonomous vehicles on the market.

    Download the photos

    [END]

    Notes for editors:
    The Forum for Mobility and Society (FMS) brings together the transport and mobility community to debate, draw long-term perspectives and develop visions for tomorrow’s mobility. The FMS gathers Europe’s key institutional actors including Members of the European Parliament, representatives from the European Commission, industry experts and society at large. It does not seek to give a definitive outlook on a particular topic, but examines current debates on mobility issues from a variety of perspectives so that new solutions may be found. The FMS regularly organises conferences, panel discussions, workshops, networking events and visits for its members and wider stakeholder community. The wide range of events aims to foster lively discussions on complex matters. www.debatingmobility.eu