Dubai’s leading position in smart mobility in focus at World Government Summit
Roads and Transport Authority, General Motors to roll out self-driving taxis next year
Dubai: With the expected rollout of driverless taxis in Dubai next year, speakers at the World Government Summit today said the city has a leading role in changing the global landscape of smart mobility.
Jeff Bleich, chief legal officer of Cruise, the majority-owned autonomous vehicle subsidiary of General Motors, said: “With Dubai as our first international partner, we can innovate new cities system and the future of smart mobility.”
Bleich noted rapid digital technology requires proactive practises from governments to enhance the capabilities of their leaders to manage it and adapt to smart technology.
In April last year, Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA) announced a partnership with Cruise to make fully autonomous taxis available to the public in Dubai by 2023. Bleich noted: “Development and smart devices will be essential work systems around the world and all governments will have to involve in this positive transformation.”
Safety and security
Other speakers during the session titled ‘The future of movements: policies and innovation’, highlighted the importance of policy being agile and clear to meet the safety and security principles of the future. They noted public-private partnership will be essential in ensuring that mobility is safe and secure in the coming decade.
German cybersecurity specialist, David Colombo, also speaking at the session, added: “Everything will be digital in the future, from cars to homes. Cybersecurity is important as well as the transformation to a smart world to protect the rights of companies and save their data”.
“As we embrace digital solutions, we become more vulnerable, AVs (autonomous vehicles) will be controlled by digital technology, so cybersecurity is going to be a key challenge to create a secure future,” he underlined.