GETTY Driverless cars could be trialled in the UK next year

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The safety tests could mean the controversial robot cars are a standard part of motorway traffic by 2020. Highways England will run the trials and is likely to close individual lanes, keeping roads open. Mr Osborne will use Wednesday’s Budget to give the green light for what he sees as “the most fundamental change to transport since the invention of the internal combustion engine”.

GETTY George Osborne is expected to announce the arrival of driverless cars to Britain

He wants to make Britain a world leader in autonomous cars, a market tipped to be worth £900billion worldwide by 2025. Advocates of driverless cars claim their hi-tech sensors and GPS links could eliminate 95 per cent of crashes. Their onboard systems spot accidents, traffic jams and hazards and keep the vehicle’s distance from other cars. But a poll for uSwitch.com yesterday revealed that 49 per cent of Britons would refuse to be a passenger in a driverless car.

GETTY 49 per cent of Britons would refuse to be a passenger in a driverless car

A similar proportion is worried the software could be hacked, while reports of collisions in trials alarmed two in three of those polled. In contrast, 44 per cent think the new vehicles will make roads safer and one in four thinks they will reduce traffic jams. Mr Osborne will accelerate proposals this summer to sweep away regulatory barriers and allow autonomous driving on Britain’s motorways within this Parliament. He also plans a £15million “connected corridor” from London to Dover, with trials of convoys of driverless trucks on motorways. Mr Osborne said: “Britain must take bold decisions to ensure it leads the world when it comes to new technologies and infrastructure.

GETTY Some people worry the car’s system could be hacked

“That is what my Budget next week will seek to do.” Nissan recently said it will make its first mass-market autonomous car in Britain. Jaguar Land Rover is planning to test its autonomous and connected vehicle technology on West Midland roads this year.

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