The South Korean government will expand its autonomous driving pilot fleet to at least 3,000 vehicles next year and revise Level 4 safety standards to complete a commercialization framework, officials said, as European industry representatives urged harmonized international rules and stressed that “business viability is key.”
Korea has built a phased regulatory system to support commercializing autonomous driving, starting with a temporary operation permit introduced in 2016 that allows vehicles under development to test on public roads after meeting minimum safety requirements. As of July this year, 584 vehicles had received permits; automakers accounted for 291, roughly half, while startups made up about 10% and universities about 8%.
Officials highlighted the relative accessibility of Korea’s permit regime. In Korea the permit fee is 1,800 won and insurance costs range from 200,000 to 300,000 won, enabling universities and small and medium-sized ventures to begin test driving. By contrast, California permit costs run from 5 million to 7 million won, and buying a surety bond to cover a $5 million guarantee adds roughly $50,000 more—about 100 million won including fees—while China’s per-vehicle cost is around 40 million won.
Special pilot operation zones allow autonomous vehicles to provide paid passenger or freight services in designated areas; there are currently 55 such zones across 17 local governments. Highways have also been designated as pilot operation zones, and services are already transporting freight autonomously between logistics centers.
A performance certification system is in place for Level 4 vehicles, which can handle failures or unexpected situations autonomously under specified conditions. That system permits vehicles that meet performance requirements to be sold to transport companies or local governments on a business-to-business basis even before formal safety standards are issued. About two companies are preparing to seek such certification.
The government began a large-scale pilot this year in Gwangju with 200 vehicles and plans to expand it to at least 3,000 next year. “A problem that affects a single vehicle could spread to an entire fleet,” said Min Gyeong-chan, head of research planning at KATRI of the Korea Transportation Safety Authority, noting that as fleet size grows, dispatch, remote operation, maintenance and charging all become more complex. Min pointed to a recent incident in which several robotaxis stopped at once due to communications problems and caused traffic congestion, saying that a defect in one vehicle can affect thousands simultaneously and that service continuity and emergency response must be validated.
Regulatory changes and Level 4 safety standards for autonomous driving
Based on pilot results, the government plans to adapt the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Level 4 regulations to Korea’s roads and regulatory environment and to revise Level 4 safety standards by next year. The new international regulations assess a manufacturer’s overall safety management system rather than testing every prescribed scenario individually: manufacturers set out a safety concept, submit supporting evidence, and governments assess whether the manufacturer has the capacity and organizational capability to meet its responsibilities; safety culture is also reviewed.
On over-the-air updates to existing Level 2 vehicles, Min said that “if the update adds functions that differ from those covered by the initial self-certification, it should be treated as a recertification.”
Europe urges harmonization as business viability becomes central
Pierre Millet, chief technology officer of ACEA, said the industry’s priority has shifted from advancing technology to finding viable business cases. “The biggest challenge for manufacturers today is no longer the technology; it’s finding a business case,” he said, noting that Europe’s focus has moved toward commercial operations such as robotaxis, shuttles and long-haul freight to address a severe shortage of drivers.
Millet said interest in Level 3 is waning because, in practice, Level 3 is not very different from Level 4; as a result, Level 3 is being confined largely to premium cars while the market splits between Level 2 driver-assistance features and Level 4 driverless operation under specified conditions. He noted that the UN set new international regulations for automated driving systems last June and that Europe is moving toward a system next year that will approve Level 4 vehicles without restrictions on their use. Because it is impossible to test every driving situation, the approval process will combine simulations and testing on proving grounds and public roads with manufacturers’ “safety cases,” or reports demonstrating vehicle safety.
Millet identified differing operating rules among EU member states as a major obstacle: vehicle safety approvals are handled at the EU level, but each member state sets rules for service operations and remote operation, and “very few European countries have established operating rules for highly automated vehicles.” ACEA plans to work next year to harmonize rules among member states and to cooperate with the European Commission on issuing guidance.
He emphasized Korea’s importance to European manufacturers: as of last year, Korea was the EU’s seventh-largest automobile export market, and for many member companies Korea ranks as their third- to fifth-largest market. “Consumers prefer premium cars, and interest in autonomous-driving technology is much higher than in Europe,” Millet said. He urged Korea to continue contributing to UN discussions and to adopt international standards when drawing up its own rules. On revisions to the automotive annex of the EU–South Korea FTA he said there has been progress this year, that some issues remain under discussion, and that he is confident a positive conclusion will be reached while calling for faster adoption of UN regulations.
Asked about Chinese autonomous-driving technology, Millet said, “It is not as much of a concern in Europe as it is in Korea,” adding that European concerns focus more on the competitiveness of electric vehicles and batteries. He also said some European manufacturers are very advanced in autonomous driving but do not prominently showcase that work because it is not their core business.
Authorities and industry representatives said the twin priorities are demonstrating safe, scalable operations in large fleets and aligning regulations internationally to enable commercially viable autonomous-driving services.
