Going forward, passengers will not be required to wear seat belts on autonomous buses operating in Seoul. Standing on the bus will also be allowed. As development of autonomous driving technology continues, the Seoul city government plans to keep abolishing unnecessary in-house regulations.
On the 26th, the Seoul city government said it will revise the "Seoul autonomous vehicle safe operation regulations" to include these changes.
Accordingly, the mandatory seat belt requirement and the ban on standing for autonomous buses will be lifted in stages. This will be applied in consideration of operators' driving capabilities, routes, and pilot results. The city also decided to abolish the obligation to suspend operations in weather conditions such as heavy rain and snowfall.
The Seoul city government will continue to identify and abolish regulations that hinder the development of autonomous vehicle technology. Through this, it aims to turn areas such as Gangnam and Sangam into "Level 4 unmanned autonomous driving technology demonstration free zones (Barrier Free Zone)."
In addition, starting on the 29th, the city will enforce the revised "local government ordinance on operation and support of autonomous vehicle pilot operation zones." The revision centers on strengthening security for autonomous vehicles. Because autonomous vehicles collect sensitive personal information during operation—such as spatial information including high-precision maps, pedestrians' faces, and license plate numbers—there had been calls for security measures to prevent various data leaks.
Yeo Jang-kwon, head of transportation at the Seoul city government, said, "We will continue multifaceted support so that Seoul can establish itself as 'a global leader in autonomous mobility,' beyond the domestic level."