In Tokyo will create a department for accidents with unmanned vehicles

Tokyo police will create a department to investigate and prevent accidents involving unmanned vehicles, writes The Japan Times.

The new unit will be created as part of the Tokyo Police Road Traffic Administration, which will begin work from April 2027 and will be responsible for processing applications, investigating road accidents involving them, and developing and promoting measures to prevent such accidents.

In September, the operator of the taxi app Go, the American company Waymo and the Japanese taxi operator Nihon Kotsu announced plans to launch an unmanned taxi in Tokyo in 2027. It will be the first commercial service of its kind in Japan.

The companies intend to gradually increase the fleet of unmanned vehicles to about 100 cars. The Japanese government expects that by fiscal 2030, the number of buses, taxis and trucks with autonomous driving systems will reach 10,000. Against the background of these plans, the police need to prepare for the investigation of an accident involving unmanned vehicles.

Self-driving cars raise the question of responsibility for accidents in which there is no driver driving the car. In particular, it is necessary to determine who should be responsible for the accident – a technology developer, service operator or other road user.