PARIS -- The French government is supporting the development of self-driving cars, with the aim of deploying “highly automated” vehicles on public roads between 2020 and 2022.

France’s technology-minded president, Emmanuel Macron, appointed a senior official, Anne-Marie Idrac, to develop a national strategy for driverless mobility – including new laws, regulations for experiments and pilot projects, and cybersecurity and privacy issues.

The first legal proposals are expected by the end of this year and once approved will allow Level 3 and Level 4 passenger vehicles, driverless mass transit such as robotaxis, and automated delivery vehicles.

More than 50 autonomous-vehicle test projects have taken place in France since 2014, including robotaxis, buses and private vehicles. The government has made 40 million euros ($46 million) available to help subsidize new projects.