28-03-2025
Warning ahead of major change coming to Australian roads: 'Big problem'
The world is moving closer towards autonomous vehicles (AV), with large parts of the northern hemisphere — including Europe, China, the US and Japan — trialling the innovative technology. While it's still a while away in Australia, legal experts warn our laws must be updated in anticipation of their arrival, with current legislation largely defining a driver as a person.
New research has found most laws grant authorities the power to stop vehicles based on the presence of a human driver and their potential violation of road traffic regulations.
For instance, NSW road rules specify that "a driver is the person who is driving a vehicle". Likewise, the Australian Road Rules, which serve as a guiding framework for state and territory legislation, also define a driver as "the person who is driving".
But the introduction of self-driving cars changes all of that. Led by Charles Darwin University (CDU), the study, in collaboration with Queensland University of Technology and the University of Newcastle, reported enforcement officers only have powers to stop a vehicle based on a driver's actions.
Lead author, CDU Senior Lecturer in Law Dr Mark Brady, said that's going to have to be amended if self-driving cars end up on our roads — which he expects will happen within the next 10 to 20 years.
Speaking to Yahoo, Brady said lawmakers will need to properly consider the definition of driver in legislation, particularly those that assume human control of motor vehicles.
Brady has called for a national framework in response. "We need a harmonisation of laws," he told Yahoo. "As AVs come online more and more, you'll find that there'll be pressure generated to create a national automated vehicle framework.
"The National Transport Commission (NTC) is looking into it already, and recommendations have been made. A unified framework will mean vehicles travelling from one area to another can expect, or the occupants can expect, the same treatment and the same rules.
"That standardised set of rules is going to be exponentially more efficient than the scattered framework that we currently have state to state."
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The key issue will be determining liability, Brady said. In states like Queensland, where fault must be assigned to recover damages, adapting to AVs could be more complex.
In contrast, no-fault states may find the transition easier and could even be driven toward broader no-fault third-party insurance schemes. For insurers, they will likely follow the NTC's recommendation to recognise an Automated Driving System Entity (ADSE) — the entity or system responsible for the operation and control of an automated vehicle — as the responsible party for incidents involving self-driving vehicles.
"If you have a malfunction in an individually-owned AV, you will probably find that it will fall more towards the manufacturer's liability, rather than the individual liability for failure to take proper control of the vehicle," he said.
"But there are some warnings that might happen in an accident — did the car stop? Did the car give a warning to take control? Was that warning heeded? They're the questions that will be asked in court."
In Europe, AVs are being trialled in countries like the Netherlands and Germany. Brady expects Australia will largely look to those nations when it's our turn. "I think we will find that we'll be following Europe quite a lot, because Europe tends to have a more rights-based than a central control approach.
"AVs coming from Europe will be able to not talk to one another, but more than likely be able to understand where they all are relative to each other, too.
"What you might see in future is, when they're drafting legislation, there may be provisions for machine-readable code to be put on street signs, so that the cars themselves can automatically read the information they need to know.
"But liability will ultimately come down to the ADSE, that's one of the biggest problems."
AVs have been trialled in various parts of Australia, including cities like Melbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane, as well as in regional parts of NSW and South Australia. While they are being tested, most of the trials are taking place in controlled environments, such as university campuses, private car parks, and specific test areas, rather than on public roads.
It is widely reported that around 90 per cent of road accidents are caused by human error, highlighting the significant role that drivers' actions play in traffic incidents. This statistic highlights the potential benefits of autonomous vehicles, which are designed to eliminate human error by relying on advanced technology such as sensors, cameras, and AI systems to make decisions.
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