Autonomous vehicles without safety personnel remain some way from widespread deployment on German roads, but a nationwide consortium of transport operators, technology providers and authorities is working to prepare for their introduction.
Following the announcement of the KIRA+ project to test SAE Level 4 autonomous driving in local public transportation in Germany, a consortium group has announced that next month it is to begin co-developing a framework intended to streamline the approval process in the country for autonomous vehicle operating areas, with the aim of obtaining approval within around three months once the first vehicles reach the market. The consortium said that this could help reduce the time required to introduce driverless public transportation services.
The partners in the project are DB Regio, Rhein-Main-Verkehrsverbund (RMV), Münchner Verkehrs- und Tarifverbund (MVV), the Federal Motor Transport Authority (KBA), Landesbaudirektion Bayern München, Hessen Mobil – Straßen- und Verkehrsmanagement, DEKRA, the Association of German Transport Companies (VDV), UnternehmerTUM with MCube Consulting, the consultancy RÖDL; and the companies Holon and Mobileye.
The results will feed directly into future approval procedures in Hesse and Bavaria and pave the way for comfortable and reliable shuttle services. The goal is for passengers to experience autonomous shuttles in everyday life as early as possible, as a reliable public transportation service rather than a “technology experiment”, the consortium said, adding that this requires approval processes that are transparent, safe and efficient at the same time. The joint project is an important step toward finding a uniform route and thereby speeding up the transition from pilot operation to regular service considerably.
At the heart of the project is the deployment of autonomous vehicles that will be able to operate without a safety driver on board in future. The more uniform and digital approval processes are, the more reliably transportation operators and associations can plan new autonomous services, the consortium said.
The route to driverless operation involves two stages of approval. The first is vehicle type approval, which has not yet been fully completed for an autonomous vehicle. The consortium is focusing on the second stage: operating area approval from the relevant state authorities. This approval defines where a vehicle can operate without a driver based on the capabilities of its automated driving system, such as within a city or district.
The project partners are developing common processes to give operators and authorities greater planning certainty while reducing the time, cost and effort involved in approval. A key challenge is matching an autonomous vehicle’s operational design domain (ODD) with the characteristics of the intended operating area. Authorities must assess factors including road width, curve radii and road surfaces. As future operating areas could cover thousands of route kilometers, the project aims to automate this process to make it faster and more precise.
The project comprises four main work steps. First, the vehicle capabilities required for type approval will be standardized using the Holon urban as an example. Second, two operating areas, one in Hesse and one in Bavaria, will be described in detail. Third, the desired operating areas will be automatically matched with the vehicle’s capabilities using real-world road infrastructure data. Finally, the partners will simulate and document a complete approval process, including technical assessment through to the official decision. The process is for demonstration purposes and will not result in a legally binding decision.
The project will run from October 2026 until summer 2027. During this period, the partners will develop approval forms, procedures and documentation requirements alongside the technical descriptions, giving transportation operators clearer guidance on the information required and how it should be presented.
For vehicle manufacturers and operators, the project will focus on making the approval process repeatable across different regions. The aim is to establish a consistent procedure that can support series production and wider deployment. This could also help operators introduce and adapt autonomous passenger services more quickly by reducing delays associated with approval procedures.
Related news, RMV, DB and Holon launch KIRA+ autonomous public transportation project