Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the readiness of the UK's 4G infrastructure to enable autonomous vehicles to operate on UK roads.

Ofcom conducts annual analysis of mobile coverage across the UK, including road networks. However, more detailed assessment is necessary to understand the digital connectivity requirements of connected and automated vehicles, including the role 4G networks can play. At this early stage, there remains debate in industry about what level of digital connectivity will be necessary to enable self-driving vehicles and what the optimal telecommunications technologies will be. Digital connectivity is a key issue, and earlier this month, the Department commissioned research to analyse how ‘digital demand’ will evolve over time and across different road environments. The findings are due in the summer. The Department is also supporting the Government’s digital implementation task force in their work to consider how best to deliver the Conservative manifesto commitment (2017) to improve mobile coverage across major roads, and continue to fund a range of world leading trials and test beds across the UK.