Road to autonomous vehicles in Australia: an exploratory literature review

Autonomous vehicle technology and its potential effects on traffic and daily activities is a popular topic in the media and in the research community. It is anticipated that AVs will reduce accidents, improve congestion, increase the utility of time spent travelling and reduce social exclusion. However, knowledge about the way in which AVs will function in a transport system is still modest and a recent international study showed a lower familiarity with AVs in Australia compared to the USA and UK. Attitudes towards fully automated driving (or higher levels of autonomy) range from ‘excitement’ to ‘suspicion’. The breadth of feelings may be due to the low level of awareness or reflect polarising attitudinal positions. Whilst experts appear to be more confident about the adoption of AV technology in the near future, public acceptance is key to AVs’ market success. Hence, research that examines local contexts and opinions is needed. This paper reviews existing scholarly work and identifies gaps and directions for future developments, with a focus on the Australian context. The review will address the following broad categories: investigation of AV features and mobility models, implications for road traffic and connectivity to infrastructure (especially in low to medium density urban areas), public attitudes and concerns, travel behaviour and demand, potential business models, and policy implications. The aims of the paper are to identify critical issues for the development of a focus group inquiry to understand attitudes of potential users of AVs and to highlight AV development issues for policy makers in Australia

• Record URL:
  https://www.arrb.com.au/Information-services/Publications/Road-Transport-Research-Journal.aspx
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/oclc/26087078
• Supplemental Notes:
  • An earlier version of this hitherto unpublished paper was originally prepared for presentation at the 38th Australasian Transport Research Forum (ATRF) 2016 in Melbourne, Victoria. It has been critically reviewed by at least two anonymous experts in the relevant field and is accepted for publication, with revisions and edits.
• Authors:
  • Sun, Y
  • Olaru, D
  • Smith, B
  • Greaves, S
  • Collins, A
• Publication Date: 2017-3

Media Info

• Pagination: 34-47
• Serial:
  • Road and Transport Research
  • Volume: 26
  • Issue Number: 1
  • Publisher: ARRB
  • ISSN: 1037-5783

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Attitudes; Automated vehicle control; Literature reviews; Planning; Policy; Transportation planning; Vehicles
• Uncontrolled Terms: Policy and planning
• Geographic Terms: Australia
• ATRI Terms: Attitude; Autonomous vehicle; Literature review; Policy; Transport planning
• ITRD Terms: 2267: Attitude (psychol); 3882: Automatic
• Subject Areas: Planning and Forecasting; Policy; Vehicles and Equipment; I91: Vehicle Design and Safety;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01638127
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: ARRB
• Files: ITRD, ATRI
• Created Date: Jun 19 2017 10:56AM