Japan’s transportation ministry has approved mirrorless cars to drive on its roads, according to The Japan Times and Automotive News. The country green-lit the new policy after a United Nations’ working group on international auto standards said cameras could replace mirrors on cars if the camera systems met certain standards.

According to The Japan Times, “At first, monitors and the cameras must be positioned in the same place as current rear-view and side-view mirrors and offer the same views.” Transportation Ministry official Maseru Miyashita told the paper, “Getting used to (monitors instead of mirrors) is the main factor to ensure drivers’ safety.”

Mirrorless cars substitute analog rear- and side-view mirrors for cameras and screens. Advocates say that dropping side-view mirrors can make a car more aerodynamic and cameras can have a wider field of vision than a mirror. On the other hand, a mirror is a simple thing, and a camera and screen setup is complex, and, by nature, one is easier to fix than the other. In addition, as Automotive News points out, some in the auto industry have cautioned that although a rear-view camera can go a long way in eliminating blind spots, some drivers rely on the rear pillars in a car to gauge exactly where an object coming up behind the car is.

This weekend, Automotive News spoke to Japan's Ichikoh Industries and Germany's Bosch GmbH, both of which say they are building camera systems to replace mirrors in cars in the coming years.

“Ichikoh's first product is an interior rearview mirror that has a double function: It operates as a regular mirror and with the flick of a switch, it transforms into a digital screen displaying a live video feed of the rear view,” the news outlet reports, adding that the system will be delivered to a Japanese automaker in August. Bosch (which is currently under investigation in the US for its alleged role in the Volkswagen diesel emissions scandal) is also contemplating a system of cameras for mirrorless cars that would be rolled out over the next three years.

With this step in the direction of digital technology, other countries may not be far behind. Tesla, for example, has lobbied US regulators to accept mirrorless cars, says Automotive News. And, at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, BMW revealed a mirrorless i8 concept car.