Motor Vehicles (Trials of Automotive Technologies) Amendment Bill

Introduction and First Reading

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN (Lee—Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Minister Assisting the Minister for Planning, Minister Assisting the Minister for Housing and Urban Development) (16:06): Obtained leave and introduced a bill for an act to amend the Motor Vehicles Act 1959. Read a first time.

Second Reading

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN (Lee—Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Minister Assisting the Minister for Planning, Minister Assisting the Minister for Housing and Urban Development) (16:06): I move:

That this bill be now read a second time.

I am pleased to introduce the Motor Vehicles (Trials of Automotive Technologies) Amendment Bill 2015. At the opening of parliament earlier this year, the Governor announced that the government would 'legislate for driverless vehicles which will revolutionise transportation in South Australia’. This bill establishes a legislative framework to allow for trials of driverless vehicle technology on our roads. I seek leave to insert the remainder of the second reading explanation in Hansard without reading it.

Leave granted.

This not only places South Australia ahead of the technological curve but gives this Government the privilege of being the lead jurisdiction in ‘real life’ trialing of driverless vehicle technology in Australia.

Major car manufacturers and technology giants are teaming up to make driverless vehicles a reality and are investing millions of dollars globally in the race to develop the world’s first fully driverless vehicle for the community.

This legislation will mean new opportunities for South Australian businesses, because it’s estimated that the driverless vehicles industry will be worth $90 billion globally by 2030. This legislation sends a clear message to manufacturers and innovators that they can come to South Australia to develop and test there technology for Australian roads.

Google, Volvo, Mercedes-Benz and Tesla amongst others have all been testing their driverless vehicle technology in recent years. Google's fleet of experimental drone cars have already completed over 3 million driverless kilometres over the last 6 years, with only 14 minor incidents—none of which were caused by the driverless vehicle.

Earlier this year, a South Australian transport portfolio delegation was able to see and experience the Google self-driving car first-hand. Impressive is an understatement in terms of how advanced the company’s technology and business model has progressed. The director of self driving cars at Google, Dr Chris Urmson, has made it clear that the company plans to have completely driverless cars on the market within the next 5 years.

Stefan Moser, Head of Product and Technology Communications at Audi, has announced that the next generation of their A8 sedan will be able to drive itself with full autonomy, with Audi suggesting they are willing to bring on-road testing of fully autonomous vehicles to South Australia. Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, estimates that ‘five or six years from now we will be able to achieve true autonomous driving where you could literally get in the car, go to sleep and wake up at your destination’. He then added another 2 to 3 years for regulatory approval.

On 21 July 2015, the Government announced that Volvo will conduct the first on-road trials of driverless vehicle technology on the Southern Expressway during the weekend of the 7 and 8 November this year. This will mark the first on-road testing of a driverless vehicle in the Southern Hemisphere.

Volvo’s recently released XC90 SUV will have autonomous features specially programmed for the trial, allowing it to be operated hands-free, within a controlled environment.

The Volvo trials will immediately follow an international conference on driverless cars that the Government will host in Adelaide. The expertise and calibre of the international speakers invited to present at the Conference will facilitate open discussion and reflection on the potential benefits of the technology to the State. Both the conference and the Volvo trial will provide a wonderful opportunity to showcase the latest driverless vehicle technology and satisfy public curiosity.

It is envisaged that the Volvo trial on the Southern Expressway will be the first of many trials conducted in SA. This government is actively pursuing discussions with market players, South Australia is keen to be a leader in take-up of this technology, and applying it to real-life scenarios. Discussions with vehicle manufacturers, technology providers and researches throughout the globe have already shown that the opportunity to prove this groundbreaking technology in an on-road context will be a chance that many vendors will take up.

The Motor Vehicles (Trials of Automotive Technologies) Amendment Bill 2015 will enable the Minister to authorise trials of automotive technologies and issue exemptions from the relevant provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act 1959 and any laws that regulate drivers and use of motor vehicles on roads.

In the interests of transparency, the Bill contains measures to ensure the general public are kept informed of any trials taking place. The authorisation for a trial must contain relevant information, including:

1. the area of the State in which the trial is to be held;

2. the period of the trial;

3. the scope and nature of the trial;

4. the name of the person authorised to undertake the trial.

The details of any upcoming trials will be published on relevant departmental websites at least 1 month in advance of the commencement of a trial. The Minister must also prepare and table a report for both Houses of this Parliament of any authorised trial within 6 months of its completion.

Enticing the likes of Google, Volvo, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, Tesla Motors and similar international companies, leading the work towards driverless vehicle technologies, to undertake trials in Adelaide will be a real coup for our State.

The Bill has been drafted with this in mind. For example, a confidentiality clause seeks to protect the prospective company’s commercial-in-confidence details. Additionally there is also an offence provision against hindering an authorised trial or interfering with equipment with a maximum penalty of $10,000.

The Bill balances protecting the interests of trial proponents with important safeguards to protect the Government and general public by requiring all proposals to have risk management plans and proper public liability insurance. There is also an indemnity provision protecting those exercising official powers or functions in good faith.

As a further community protection, the Bill as a clear deterrent makes it an offence for a company conducting an authorised trial to breach any conditions of exemptions of the trial. If a trial participant commits an offence, the participant may also be charged for the substantive offence. The exemption does not apply to the benefit of the exempted person to the extent that he or she is in breach of a condition of the condition.

To further protect the community, the Bill makes it an offence for a company conducting an authorised trial to breach any conditions of exemptions of the trial. More importantly, the Minister will have the power to revoke or suspend an authorised trial for any breach of condition or if it’s otherwise in the public interest to do so.

The future of driverless vehicles technology when ready for release to the community has the potential to offer numerous broad reaching benefits to the community as a whole. The elderly, disabled people or those with poor eyesight will have improved mobility and independence. The technology uses a range of sensors to constantly monitor the surroundings and obey all road traffic laws and can thereby eliminate human error in road crash and look to substantially reduce injuries and deaths on our roads. We can make better use of road space, reduce congestion and provide more consistent journey times, through vehicles communicating with each other and their surroundings eg vehicles can ‘platoon’ (run in close formation) creating more efficient use of the existing road network, thereby reducing congestion and increasing fuel and carbon savings. This can also breathe new life into our diminishing vehicle manufacturing industries. For example, local Adelaide based technology company Cohda Wireless is already exporting locally manufactured wireless sensor systems providing connected vehicle capability to General Motors in the United States.

I hope the Bill will receive the support of all Members so that it may pass in a timely manner prior to the commencement of the Volvo trials in November.

I commend the Bill to Members.

Explanation of Clauses

Part 1—Preliminary

1—Short title

2—Commencement

3—Amendment provisions

These clauses are formal.

Part 2—Amendment of Motor Vehicles Act 1959

4—Amendment of section 116—Claim against nominal defendant where vehicle uninsured

This clause amends the definition of uninsured motor vehicle in section 116(1) of the principal Act to include a driverless car the subject of an authorised trial under new Part 4A and in relation to which there is in force a policy of public liability insurance referred to in new section 134H(a).

5—Insertion of Part 4A

This clause inserts new Part 4A into the Motor Vehicles Act 1959 as follows:

Part 4A—Trials of automotive technologies

134B—Interpretation

This section defines key terms used in new Part 4A.

134C—Minister may publish or adopt guidelines

This section enables the Minister to publish or adopt guidelines applicable to the operation of new Part 4A.

134D—Minister may authorise trials of automotive technologies

This section enables the Minister to authorise trials of automotive technology. The section sets out requirements that the person undertaking the trial must satisfy prior to the Minister authorising the trial, as well as setting out procedural matters relating to the authorisation.

134E—Exemptions from this and other Acts

This section enables the Minister to grant exemptions from the principal Act, as well as any other Act, for the purposes of an authorised trial. The section sets out procedural requirements for such exemptions, including a requirement that the Minister consult with other Ministers when granting exemptions under Acts for which they are responsible.

134F—Revocation and suspension of exemption

This section allows the Minister to revoke or suspend an exemption under section 134E in the circumstances set out in the section.

134G—Offence to contravene etc condition of exemption

This section provides an offence for a person who contravenes or fails to comply with a condition of an exemption, with a maximum penalty of a $2,500 fine. The exemption does not operate in the person's favour during any period of contravention or non-compliance.

134H—Requirement for insurance

This section sets out the minimum standards in relation to the insurance in respect of a trial that must be held by the person undertaking the trial. This includes third party insurance and other public liability insurance.

134I—Offence to hinder authorised trial or interfere with equipment

This section provides an offence for a person to hinder or obstruct a trial without reasonable excuse, with a maximum penalty of a $10,000 fine.

134J—Immunity relating to official powers or functions

This section provides immunity from civil liability for specified persons in relation to things done in good faith and without negligence in relation to a trial.

134K—Commencement of prosecutions

This section requires the consent of the Minister, or, in the case of an offence against another Act, the Minister responsible for that Act, before a prosecution relating to a trial can be commenced.

134L—Confidentiality

This section requires the Minister to keep certain commercial information confidential.

134M—Report to Parliament

This section requires the Minister to provide a report to Parliament on each completed trial.

Debate adjourned on motion of Mr Gardner.