DRIVERLESS cars could stop "vehicle-ramming" terror attacks, experts have claimed.

Self-driving tech would help "de-weaponise" cars so they couldn't be used by terrorists to drive at crowds on pavements.

3 Driverless cars could put an end to ramming terror attacks Credit: Getty - Contributor

It follows a series of attacks around the world - including Westminster, Finsbury Park, London Bridge as well as more recently in New York.

And boffins believe autonomous cars could stop tragedies like these with computer software designed to veer away from people.

Dr Junfeng Jiao, director of the Urban Information Lab at the University of Texas, told Inverse: "With the development of the technology, these tragedies may be taken into account by the makers such as Tesla and Google.

"This is a huge opportunity for the next generation to de-weaponise cars."

3 Grayling thinks driverless cars will be on UK roads within four years

Many cars already feature autonomous emergency braking when faced with a pedestrian or obstacle but it often only works at low speeds.

This will change as more advanced driver assistance systems are developed and operational speeds increased.

The UK goverment reckons this could happen sooner rather than later, too, with driverless cars on the road within just four years.

Transport secretary Chris Grayling said: "Self-driving cars should make road travel far safer by eliminating the biggest contributory factor in accidents today - human error."

3 New York was the latest city to be hit by a ram attack Credit: Getty Images - Getty

The threat of ramming attacks could instead be replaced by hacking of the software.

Previously, tech geeks have managed to hack into systems and take over control of cars and traffic lights - just like Fast and Furious 8.

And terror cells could target similar schemes to bring cities to a standstill.

However, this would require much more investment and lack the ease and immediacy that the recent attacks showed.

Car manufacturers are also working tirelessly to ensure their systems are bulletproof when it comes to outsiders getting access to safety systems.

Now we can see what Tesla self-driving cars will see as they motor along the road