Dr Steve Cassidy, director of ESP Group commenting on the Chancellor’s Autumn Budget, said: “It is encouraging to see the chancellor upping the Government’s ante on bringing driverless vehicles to the roads across the UK.

“There is still however much work to be done on ensuring that the transition from testing and manufacturing to use on our roads is built solidly on users’ needs. For instance, there are still many question marks over how self-driving cars and fully autonomous vehicles can integrate into existing transport systems to create a seamless mobility service for the user, in terms of planning, ticketing and payment. 

“To integrate into our everyday lives, people must be assured that autonomous vehicles, and the wider mobility system of which they must be a part, works for them: a trusted, best value reliable service.

“ESP Group is part of a 20-partner consortium to deliver the CAPRI (connected & autonomous pods on-road implementation) project. This will examine how vehicles can navigate safely in both pedestrian and road environments. CAPRI will include design work on the user and service proposition needed to make autonomous vehicles work for the user. 

This includes customer service from the contact centre Journeycall – part of the ESP Group. CAPRI is an important project as we make driverless cars a reality on UK roads.”