This report presents the work of a European Commission Expert Group established to advise on specific ethical issues raised by driverless mobility for road transport. The report aims to promote a safe and responsible transition to connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) by supporting stakeholders in the systematic inclusion of ethical considerations in the development and regulation of CAVs.

In the past few years, ethical questions associated with connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) have been the subject of academic and public scrutiny. A common narrative presents the development of CAVs as something that will inevitably benefit society by reducing the number of road fatalities and harmful emissions from transport and by improving the accessibility of mobility services. In contrast, this report applies a Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) approach to CAVs. This approach recognises the potential of CAV technology to deliver the aforementioned benefits but also recognises that technological progress alone is not sufficient to realise this potential.

To deliver the desired results, the future vision for CAVs ought to incorporate a broader set of ethical, legal and societal considerations into the development, deployment and use of CAVs. To this end, this report presents a set of 20 ethical recommendations concerning the future development and use of CAVs. These recommendations are grounded in the fundamental ethical and legal principles laid down in the EU Treaties and in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights.