2019 Autonomous Vehicles Readiness Index

In this, the second KPMG Autonomous Vehicle Readiness Index we rank 25 countries on their preparedness for the AV revolution. The Netherlands tops the rankings for the second year and the 2019 Index includes five new countries: Norway, Finland, Israel, Czech Republic and Hungary.

The Index provides an in-depth view of what it takes for countries to meet the challenges of self-driving vehicles, evaluating the preparedness of a cross-section of 25 countries—up from 20 in the inaugural year of the AVRI—globally. Each country is evaluated against four pillars: policy and legislation; technology and innovation, infrastructure, and consumer acceptance. Within the four pillars are 25 factors that reflect everything from legislation allowing AVs to operate to the condition of roads.

“The results of the 2019 Autonomous Vehicles Readiness Index tell us that countries are making rapid progress toward a future with autonomous vehicles,” says Richard Threlfall, Global Head of Infrastructure, KPMG International. “They show that governments are focused on encouraging the modernization of transport, and ensuring that innovation in driverless cars and trucks delivers real benefits to their communities.”

Highlights from the top ranked countries include:

• The Netherlands, ranked number one for a second year, is working with neighbors to adopt AV technology for freight, with a plan to launch platoons of more than 100 driverless trucks on major routes from Amsterdam to Antwerp and Rotterdam to the Ruhr valley.

• With a leading university, second-ranked Singapore has created a test town for driverless vehicles complete with traffic lights, bus stops, skyscrapers and a rain machine to recreate its extremely wet, tropical weather.

New this year, KPMG conducted a consumer opinion research project to better understand consumer sentiment on AVs. The findings revealed a correlation between countries lower in the rankings having the most consumer interest in AVs.

Download the report here