Japan plans to revise auto safety certification standards to pave the way for mass production of L4 and L5 self-driving vehicles
Japan is considering revising its auto safety certification standards so that self-driving cars without a steering wheel, brake pedal or accelerator pedal can be certified under a unified standard, replacing case-by-case approvals. The new rules would cover L4 vehicles that drive themselves under specific conditions and L5 vehicles that need no human driver at all, with a transport ministry working group due to discuss the revision on November 4 and the standard planned to apply to vehicles produced from December. This matters because a single certification path removes a key regulatory bottleneck for driverless taxis and other new vehicle types reaching mass production.
SOURCES
- IT之家2026-11-03 00:06