Written Answer · 2026-10-07 · Parliament 15
Test Parameters and Safety Settings for Safe Launch of Driverless Ride-hailing Service in Singapore
Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim asked the Minister for Transport about Waymo's driverless ride-hailing service targeted for 2028, specifically what intervention-free distance and maximum disengagement rate LTA's Deployment Readiness Assessment requires before approval, and whether LTA will publish operators' disengagement, incident and crash data. Minister Jeffrey Siow replied that AVs must demonstrate safe and reliable operation within their intended conditions before carrying passengers with a safety operator on board, without giving specific numeric thresholds, and said operators must report incidents to LTA and the Traffic Police, with MOT and LTA looking into publishing more AV data regularly.
Why it matters
LTA did not disclose specific thresholds, such as disengagement rates, that autonomous vehicles must meet before carrying passengers; regular publication of operating data is still under study.
Key Points
- • Under LTA's Deployment Readiness Assessment framework, AVs must demonstrate they can operate safely and reliably within their intended operating conditions before being allowed to carry passengers with a safety operator on board.
- • The assessment also considers factors such as operating environments and the level of public confidence and acceptance.
- • AV operators are required to report incidents involving third parties or property damage.
- • LTA and the Traffic Police will investigate each incident.
- • The Ministry of Transport and LTA are looking into regularly publishing more data related to AV operations.
The Government said AVs must meet safety and reliability standards under LTA's framework before carrying passengers, and that it is looking into publishing more operational data regularly, but it did not give specific intervention-free distance or disengagement rate thresholds, nor commit to a specific arrangement for publishing each operator's disengagement, incident and crash data.
Jamus Jerome Lim's concern was the lack of clear, quantifiable safety thresholds and transparency around operational data for driverless ride-hailing services.
This signals that Singapore's approach to regulating autonomous vehicles relies on a framework-based, context-dependent safety assessment rather than published quantitative thresholds, with data transparency still under study rather than committed.
"Under the Land Transport Authority's (LTA's) Deployment Readiness Assessment framework, all autonomous vehicles (AV) operating on public roads must demonstrate that they can operate safely and reliably within their intended operating conditions before they are allowed to carry passengers with a safety operator on board."
Participants (2)
- Jamus Jerome Lim
- Mr Jeffrey Siow
Original Text (English)
SPRS Hansard · Fetched: 2026-10-21
35 Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim asked the Minister for Transport with regard to Waymo’s driverless ride-hailing service targeted for 2028 (a) what intervention-free distance and maximum disengagement rate must be demonstrated under LTA's Deployment Readiness Assessment before driverless operations are approved; and (b) whether LTA will publish each operator's disengagement, incident and crash data before and after approval.
Mr Jeffrey Siow : Under the Land Transport Authority's (LTA's) Deployment Readiness Assessment framework, all autonomous vehicles (AV) operating on public roads must demonstrate that they can operate safely and reliably within their intended operating conditions before they are allowed to carry passengers with a safety operator on board. Beyond these considerations, we will also consider other factors, such as operating environments, and the level of public confidence and acceptance.
AV operators are required to report incidents involving third parties or property damage. LTA and the Traffic Police will investigate each incident. The Ministry of Transport and LTA are looking into regularly publishing more data related to AV operations.