MERCEDES-BENZ said it’s become the first international auto brand permitted to test advanced autonomous driving in Beijing at a time when domestic and global carmakers are racing to perfect the technology.
The approval will let Mercedes start trials of its Level 4 self-driving capabilities on Beijing’s highways and urban roads – which means the vehicle can perform all driving tasks within certain conditions with human override still an option. Some of the moves to be tested include parking, reversing and turning left in busy traffic without driver intervention, according to a statement published Aug 2 to the company’s official Wechat account.
With intense competition in China’s auto market, manufacturers are betting on autonomous driving to gain an edge over competitors and attract customers. Tesla is working to bring the advanced driver assistance technology it calls Full Self Driving to China, gaining permission to test on some areas in Shanghai. General Motors received approval last year to trial self-driving Cadillacs in Shanghai.
Meanwhile, technology companies such as Alphabet’s Waymo and Baidu’s Apollo Go are developing robotaxis as the future of mobility, testing the driverless service on the streets of cities including San Francisco and Wuhan.
Currently, Chinese regulation allows advanced driver assistance system at Level 2 automation, which means that a car can perform steering, acceleration and lane changes lanes, but a human needs to monitor the driving at all times and keep their hands on the steering wheel. BLOOMBERG
