New Draft Amendment to Road Traffic Safety Law Adds Dedicated Chapter on Autonomous Vehicles

On August 25, a draft amendment to the Road Traffic Safety Law, submitted for its first reading at a session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress, added a dedicated chapter titled "Special Provisions on Automated Driving Vehicles," clearly defining the concepts of automated driving vehicles and driver-assistance functions. According to the draft, if a road traffic safety violation occurs while an automated driving vehicle’s autonomous driving function is activated, the manufacturer or importer of the vehicle shall be responsible for handling the matter. Automated driving vehicles operating with their autonomous driving function deactivated, as well as vehicles equipped only with driver-assistance functions, shall be regulated under the rules applicable to non-automated vehicles.