Tesla is aiming to introduce its Full Self-Driving software across the European Union as early as this summer, with active discussions currently under way with the Irish Government and several other EU member states, reports RTE.
The company has stated that securing approval for FSD in Europe is critical to reversing a 27% decline in regional sales recorded last year.
This week in Brussels, Dutch authorities presented their case to fellow European regulators to approve the technology, reports RTE.
The Netherlands became the first EU nation to grant preliminary approval following 18 months of extensive research and testing on public roads, reports RTE.
Despite its name, the Dutch road authority RDW emphasised that Tesla’s FSD is not a self-driving system but rather a driver assistance system, classified as Level 2+ autonomous driving.
This means it can manage braking, acceleration, and steering, but the driver must remain attentive at all times and bears full legal responsibility, reports RTE.
Tesla’s FSD goes a step beyond standard Level 2 systems by allowing the driver to remove their hands from the wheel as an additional feature.
Professor Sergio Savaresi of the Polytechnic University of Milan explained that in a standard Level 2 vehicle, the driver must be able to react and take control instantaneously, reports RTE.
He described the reaction time involved in hands-off driving as a grey area that remains the subject of ongoing debate, reports RTE.
In a statement to RTÉ News, the Department of Transport confirmed that Tesla is currently in discussions with Irish authorities, including the National Standards Authority of Ireland, regarding its FSD system.
The department added that while talks would continue at both national and EU levels, it was not currently possible to provide any timeline for EU-level approval, and that any national permission would be contingent on that approval first being granted, reports RTE.
A national strategy for connected and autonomous vehicles has been in development by the Department of Transport since 2018.
While not yet finalised, a legislative amendment in March cleared a path for Level 2 software to be lawfully used in Ireland, though no such systems are currently operating on public roads, reports RTE.
Concerns have been raised about Tesla’s FSD by regulators in Sweden, Norway and Finland, who cited a tendency to exceed speed limits and questioned the system’s performance on icy road surfaces, reports RTE.
Last year, the US traffic safety authority opened an investigation into 2.9 million Tesla vehicles following reports of crashes involving the software.
Professor Savaresi noted that many accidents involving FSD occurred because users became overconfident, effectively using the system at a level beyond what is permitted, reports RTE.
Tesla counters that its FSD improves road safety in the United States by over 80% by reducing human error, and describes its driver assistance safety systems as setting a global standard for vehicle safety, reports RTE.
Despite ongoing concerns, researchers are broadly optimistic about the future of autonomous vehicles. Dr Martin Glavin of the University of Galway called for greater government oversight over implementation, rather than leaving companies to determine safety standards independently.
In Milan, Professor Savaresi’s research team is focused on Level 4 autonomy — fully driverless cars capable of operating independently in most or all conditions — describing it as the real transformational breakthrough, and flagging Europe’s lack of its own artificial intelligence for autonomous driving as a critical issue for national security, reports RTE.
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