The UK will take a lead role in the promotion of autonomous vehicles following its approval of driverless cars on British roads from January next year.
The British government has opened a tender process offering up to £10 million ($18 million) to be divided between three separate bids in three different UK cities, as part of the first pilot program of its type.
Announced by the government's Business Secretary Vince Cable, the autonomous car funding scheme is made possible via an amendment that will soon make it legal for both driver-supervised and completely driverless cars to cruise around the British Isles.
Autonomous vehicles can navigate their way around not only streets, intersections and highway entries and exits, but also around the flow of unpredictable traffic, thanks to an array of high-tech sensors, cameras and advanced computing and navigation software.
The UK's Transport Minister, Claire Perry, said driverless cars would transform the UK's transport network: "They could improve safety, reduce congestion and lower emissions, particularly CO2.
"We are determined to ensure driverless cars can fulfil this potential which is why we are actively reviewing regulatory obstacles to create the right framework for trialling these vehicles on British roads," said Perry.
For the program to run, the government will change the road laws to allow the widespread use of autonomous vehicles, although a clause states that drivers must be able to "override or take control of the car".
Bidders for the tax-payer-funded cash are expected to include consortiums made up by local governments, technology suppliers and car manufacturers, the latter most likely to comprise a few British-based companies such as Jaguar Land Rover.
The tender process closes in October 2014 and the winning bids can begin deploying autonomous cars from January 2015.
The idea of the pilot program is to stoke the development of self-driving vehicles, and the scheme will last between two and three years.
Cable and UK Science Minister Greg Clark made the announcement at the motor industry research organisation MIRA in the West Midlands.
"Today's announcement will see driverless cars take to our streets in less than six months, putting us at the forefront of this transformational technology and opening up new opportunities for our economy and society," said Cable.
A handful of countries already allow the limited use of autonomous cars, such as Japan, the USA and several European countries, and a wide range of car-makers are well advanced in their development of autonomous vehicles.
Technology that allows vehicles to navigate their way around town without driver input has long been available, but the biggest barriers to autonomous cars are legislation and the question of liability in the event of a collision or worse.
The most advanced automated driving technologies currently available in Australia include lane-keeping assistance programs that can steer a vehicle back into its lane, radar-based cruise control that automatically accelerates and brakes, and automated emergency braking (AEB) systems.
The UK government's move is expected to spur other countries into removing the hurdles preventing autonomous vehicles, which some enthusiasts say could be the beginning of the end for the fun of driving.