PAsCAL D8.1 Common issues, approaches and lessons learned across all modes for Industry and Public Authorities

The aim of the PAsCAL project, funded under the "Horizon 2020" Research and Innovation program, is to improve the understanding of the implications of connected and automated vehicles (CAVs) on society. The project will create a "Guide2Autonomy" (G2A) to capture this new knowledge. Outcomes from the project will contribute to the training of future drivers and passengers and will help decision-makers to move towards the new forms of individual and collective mobility made possible by the spread of driverless cars. During the PAsCAL project, the perceptions and expectations of citizens regarding the new autonomous and connected driving technologies will be examined, trying to better understand their fears and concerns and to help to prepare solutions that will be able to bridge the anticipated emotional and cultural gaps. If these are not tackled, the barriers to adoption, inherent in the world of CAVs, may not be removed. Likewise, the behavior of drivers in semi-autonomous vehicles and that of all other road users will be studied, again to identify the main obstacles that will need to be removed in order to make man-machine interaction commonplace, whilst being as safe as possible. To these purposes, specific surveys have been carried out (WP3) as well as accurate behavioral analysis through simulations in the frame of WP4. The project made here extensive use of modern technologies, such as driving simulators and virtual reality platforms. In addition, PAsCAL will finally create 5 road-transport pilot projects, conducted in different countries of the European Union (WP6). The pilot projects will focus respectively on: autonomous high-capacity buses; user training through driving schools and driving academies; different types of connected shared vehicles; autonomous bus lines and, last but not least, applications that allow people with disabilities to travel, thanks to new autonomous driving technologies within a transport network. Evaluation on key performance indicators will provide common learnings (WP7). All this new knowledge will be incorporated into the "Guide2Autonomy" which will be made available to all relevant CAV stakeholders. Specific anticipated items for inclusion will be: how to train CAV users (the current "drivers"), the necessary certifications that must be obtained and any new traffic rules to be adopted. It is hoped that all of this will assist with a smooth transition to a wide scale CAV adoption. The G2A will be filled with about 100 innovative guidelines, recommendations, and tools to better understand the implications of Connected and Automated Vehicles (CAVs) and Cooperative, Connected and Automated Mobility (CCAM) on society, to educate the future drivers and non-drivers, and to design more user oriented CCAM products and services in the public interests. In order to assure that our recommendations are steered to actual improvements PAsCAL defined four thematic domains in which change could improve user acceptance and public awareness. These four topics are: Strategies for integrating CCAM in present public policies; Design of new CCAM infrastructure and technologies; User oriented CCAM ICT developments; Management of CCAM and stimulating local economy, social inclusion and environmental protection. Each thematic leader was asked to identify key areas and related common issues and approaches that influence public awareness and user acceptance of CCAM in their specific domain. Each of those identified key areas are presented, as well as the present common issues and current approaches. Some initial lessons were identified of discrepancies between their current situation and the needed features to improve user acceptance and public awareness of its benefits. Subsequently, the PAsCAL recommendations will be focussed on those key areas. This will allow industry and public authorities to act upon and improve the public awareness and increase user’s acceptance of CAV technologies and CCAM in general.This publication is produced in the PAsCAL project which has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No 81509