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Hull most ready UK city for autonomous cars – Nationwide Vehicle Contracts

Despite London being the first UK city to see autonomous cars on its roads, when Waymo and Moove launch an autonomous taxi service, it ranked 36th.

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Research conducted by Nationwide Vehicle Contracts has ranked Hull as the UK city most ready for autonomous cars.

Despite London being the first UK city to see autonomous cars on its roads, when Waymo and Moove launch an autonomous taxi service, the city ranked 36th.

Hull was ranked first due to its widespread 5G coverage, gigabit capable broadband and its high rate of road collisions.

The city has a rate of 967.75 collisions per billion miles travelled, the second highest in the UK.

London scored lower due to more limited gigabit broadband capability.

Nationwide Vehicle Contracts said Southend-On-Sea could benefit too, due to its advanced technological capabilities and high number of collisions per billion miles travelled (689.75).

Keith Hawes, director at Nationwide Vehicle Contracts, said: “The latest Waymo announcement is exciting, but London’s real test will begin when the driverless taxis hit the busy roads. 

“At the moment, driverless taxis operating in the U.S. have the benefit of straighter and wider roads.

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“However, the UK’s ring roads, country lanes and sharp bends are likely to pose greater navigational challenges. 

“Our recent study shows that although London has relatively high readiness for becoming a driverless city in terms of technology, this lags slightly behind other UK cities at the moment. 

“Launching robotaxis in the UK is a milestone, but London must now accelerate work on foundational layers.

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“Readiness for this latest automotive innovation isn’t just about the vehicles on the roads – it’s about the ecosystem ready to absorb them.

“The most successful UK cities will be the ones that adapt to the autonomous vehicle industry with open arms and preparation, and treat it as an opportunity to reinvent travel in a smarter, safer, and more sustainable way.”

Ahead of the first autonomous cars hitting London’s roads, Hawes said that the city needs to educate the public, introduce liability regulations, upgrade digital infrastructure and consider reallocating parking spaces as car ownership reduces.

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