Published at February, 02 2022
Updated on June, 10 2024
Automated and connected road transport
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The recent technological developments make it possible to provide increasingly efficient delegated driving functions for different types of vehicles and different uses: private vehicles, public and shared transport, freight transport and logistics.
Strategic framework
National strategy
France established a national strategy for the deployment of automated and connected road mobility since 2018, which has been regulalry updated since then.
National strategy
The national strategy for the development of automated and connected road mobility provides the framework for public action.
The national strategy for the development of automated and connected road mobility has been a government commitment since 2018.
European strategic framework
Europe adopted a strategy for the development of automated and connected road mobility in May 2018, which was completed in December 2020.
Legislative and regulatory framework
Automated road transport
The deployment of automated vehicles and mobility services in France is made possible by the legislative and regulatory framework, which complements the European vehicle approval framework.
For more information on vehicle homologation, see the following page : Vehicle type-approval (FR)
The legislative and regulatory framework for the deployment of automated and connected road mobility is carried by Article 31 of the Mobility Orientation Law of December 24, 2019.
Decree n° 2021-873 of 29 June 2021 implementing the Ordinance n° 2021-443 of 14 April 2021
Decree n° 2022-1034 of 21 July 2022 (amendment of the Vienna Convention)
Order of 8 December 2022 modifying article R. 311-1 of the Traffic code (consumer information)
The national framework for testing coexists with the regulatory framework for deployment. It provides a framework and encourages technological innovation through pilots, with a view to enabling the first sustainable commercial launches.
Ordinance n° 2016-1057 of 3 August 2016
Law no 2019-486 of 22 May 2019
Law no 2015-992 of 17 August 2015
Data exchange
Data exchange from vehicles and road infrastructures is subject to legislative and regulatory provisions at both national and European level, mainly for road safety and operational purposes.
Vehicle data access is provided by the Mobility Law (LOM) of December 24, 2019, for the purposes of learning about incidents, accidents, dangerous traffic conditions, traffic and road infrastructure conditions, accident investigations and feedback on critical scenarios for automated driving.
Ordinance n° 2021-442 of 14 April 2021 related to vehicle data access
Decree n° 2023-644 of 20 July 2023 related to the access of certain vehicle data
Road traffic data is the subject of a part of European legislation and regulations (Intelligent Transport System Directive) designed to facilitate the supply and exchange of such data, with a view to improving road information and, ultimately, traffic conditions and safety.
Safety assessment and demonstration
Demonstrating safety is a key element in the deployment of automated road transport systems. This safety demonstration can be based on a body of methodological documents and technical guides.
These documents are produced by the French administration, and list the methodological doctrine of the French ecosystem, in consultation with which they are produced.
The French doctrine is based on the structuring of safety demonstration activities around the scenario-based approach.
French production is fed by European and international work.
The STRMTG (Technical service for ski lifts and guided transport), part of the French Ministry of Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion, is responsible for developing and updating safety assessment and demonstration standards.
Product guides are available on the STRMTG website :
Technical guide (in French) - Description and safety analysis of predefined routes for ARTSs - March 2024
Implementation guide (in French) - Requirements to the in-service safety management system of ARTSs - November 2023
Implementation guide - Cybersecurity of ARTSs - December 2022
Implementation guide (in French) - Mission of the approved qualified body for the safety assessment and audit for the driving of STRAs - October 2022
Technical guide - « GAME » safety demonstration for ARTSs - September 2022
Implementation guide - "Globaly at least Equivalent" (GAME) principle for automated road transport systems - December 2021
GRVA, which is one of WP.29 subgroups, is responsible for hamronizing UNECE vehicle regulations and deals with safety provisions relating to vehicle dynamics (braking, steering), advanced driver assistance systems, automated driving systems and cybersecurity provisions.
An ADS regulation, based on the European regulation (EU) 2022/1426, is currently being drafted by GRVA. This draft is based on functional safety recommendations for system design and test validation methods.
GRVA's FADS task force is also piloting the work of WP.29 subgroups on updating existing regulations for driverless vehicles.
GRVA's AVC task force has begun work on vehicle categorization, coordinated across all WP.29 subgroups.
Connectivity needs
Traffic information and, in the future, the development of driving automation are growing with connectivity needs, requiring prioritization and coordination of use cases and deployments.
The prioritization of use cases and deployments is based on a number of studies carried out in consultation with stakeholders.
Perception and acceptability
The perception and acceptability of automated vehicles is a key factor in their development. Various studies, in particular national and local surveys, allow us to monitor these issues, which are discussed during a national seminar.
An annual survey of French perceptions has been carried out since 2018.
Initially built around the perception of the automated vehicle as an object of the future, it now proposes to assess the French people's level of knowledge of driver assistance systems deployed in private vehicles, the level of acceptability of automated transport systems as part of new mobility services, as well as public expectations of specific features linked to usage (man-machine interface, for example).
Statistics on changes in French people's perceptions over time are also produced.
A bibliographic follow-up is carried out in parallel with perception surveys on a European and international scale.
The bibliographic follow-up also includes a focus on current issues: environmental challenges, man-machine interfaces, driver/consumer information and training.
A national seminar, chaired by Anne-Marie Idrac, who is in charge of the national strategy for the development of automated and connected road mobility, is organized every year and brings together all the players in the French ecosystem (administrations, parliamentarians, elected representatives, manufacturers, consumer associations, technical and academic bodies).