Jaguar and Addison Lee to trial driverless cars in London

Driverless cars will be trialled in London within three years, it was announced today.

Details of the “world-leading” pilots were unveiled by the Department for Business as it announced the winners of a £25 million investment pot.

The two Government-backed London schemes involve taxi firm Addison Lee and car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover.

The first pilot will deploy 15 vehicles on four taxi services in North Greenwich. It will include a feeder service to the Tube station and a “go anywhere” service in Greenwich.

The ServCity pilot, led by Jaguar Land Rover, will test six autonomous Land Rovers in four London boroughs.

A third scheme will involve an autonomous bus taking passengers across the Forth Bridge into Edinburgh. The six-month pilots are due to launch in 2021.

Business secretary Greg Clark, who was today due to test-drive one of the vehicles, said: “Self-driving cars will revolutionise the way we move goods and people.”