Page - (000167) - in Autonomes Fahren - Technische, rechtliche und gesellschaftliche Aspekte

1558.3 Visions of autonomous driving in Europe technology take hold, they have the potential to direct future R&D trajectories and other societal and political actions. As we will see below, autonomous vehicle technologies are increasingly being viewed as an important component of future transport systems. Their development is being linked to concerns about industrial competitiveness, sustainable development, resource efficiency, safety, and assistance for the elderly and others who might otherwise not be able to drive a car. At the same time, there are some voices of concern that there could be a loss of control through robotization of automobiles. Here we consider how autonomous driving is discussed at the European level before turning further below to discussions in other economies. To understand how autonomous driving vehicles are being discussed at the European level, we looked at strategy documents, European-funded research projects, and important networks related to autonomous driving. The analysis shows something of a mismatch between the interests of specific industrial actors in a rapid commercialization of autono- mous driving technologies with broader European visions and objectives in the transport area in which autonomous driving technologies play some role, but little attention is given to autonomous vehicle technologies. Autonomous driving technologies are not widely discussed in European strategic documents although some research projects are being funded. This could be important since the extent of attention given to a subject and the visions associated with it may determine whether or not political support is lent to a tech- nology’s development. With little explicit attention given to autonomous driving vehicles at the European level, little political action can be expected unless there are either sudden technological innovation shocks or stronger political lobbying by stakeholders. 8.3.1 European Strategy Documents Autonomous driving technologies have received little attention to date in European Commission strategic documents, including roadmaps, green papers, and white papers. To the extent autonomous vehicle technologies are discussed it is often in the context of broader EU debates on European competitiveness, innovation, climate protection, energy security, employment, and education (the EU 2020 strategy) [17]. Guided by the general framework objectives of the EU 2020 strategy, the following documents were analyzed: “Roadmap to a Single European Transport Area – Towards a competitive and resource efficient transport system” [18], “Research and innovation for Europe’s future mobility. Developing a European transport-technology strategy” [19], the “CARS 2020: Action Plan for a competitive and sustainable automotive industry in Europe” [20], and the “Directive on Intelligent Transport Systems” [24]. These strategic documents cover issues linked to autonomous driving: mobility, infrastructure, digitaliza- tion, and general European discourses related to innovation and climate protection. The documents differ in their degree of specificity. These documents shed light on which actors are taking up autonomous vehicle devel- opments and give an impression of how far reaching the debate on autonomous driving