Trials of automated vehicle (AV) technology are undertaken to research and develop the technology, understand the supporting regulatory and operational frameworks required, and prepare for wide-scale adoption of the technology.

Austroads has prepared guidance for the evaluation and reporting of AV trials. This is expected to help achieve consistency in evaluation and reporting undertaken, and in turn help knowledge sharing across jurisdictions and build on findings from the trials.

The guidelines developed set out the three key stages associated with evaluation and reporting. The scoping and planning stage helps with understanding the objectives and purpose of the trial and the associated evaluation, along with developing a plan to reach the evaluation objectives. For the conducting stage, the guidelines provide guidance on undertaking the trial, based on the trial plan, with necessary adjustments, to gather and analyse findings. Finally for the reporting and dissemination stage, the guidelines provide guidance on reporting on the key findings from evaluation and disseminating the report broadly.

The guidelines focus specifically on the evaluation and reporting of trials rather than the undertaking of the trials themselves which is provided by the Guidelines for Trials of Automated Vehicles in Australia 2020 issued by the National Transport Commission and Austroads, along with individual jurisdiction guidelines.

This presentation will provide an overview of how the Austroads guidance was developed, the Austroads guidelines themselves, assist practitioners who may wish to apply the guidelines to the evaluation and reporting of their AV trial.