He said that transitioning towards the adoption of autonomous vehicles required early preparations across multiple areas including safety standards, digital infrastructure, and data protection.

“We’ve already begun discussions with JPJ regarding what we refer to as the autonomous vehicle network.

“In other countries, we are already seeing driverless vehicles operating,” he said after launching Malaysia’s first vehicle forensics laboratory here today.

Gobind also noted that autonomous vehicle technology was fast becoming a reality, saying Malaysia must take proactive steps to ensure that the country is ready – legally and infrastructurally – to support its implementation.

Transport minister Loke Siew Fook said in September last year that his ministry was mulling new legislation to regulate the operation of autonomous vehicles on public roads.

Loke said there were presently no specific laws governing autonomous vehicles in Malaysia, including for systems such as the autonomous rapid transit.