China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) today announced the country’s first batch of L3 (Level 3) conditional autonomous driving vehicles to receive market access approval, marking a key step toward the commercialization of L3 autonomous driving technologies. Two models, designed respectively for urban congestion scenarios and highway driving, will begin pilot road operations in designated areas of Beijing and Chongqing. The first approved model is Changan’s SC7000AAARBEV pure electric sedan. It supports autonomous driving within a single lane on highways and urban expressways under congested traffic conditions, with a maximum speed of 50 km/h. The second model is Arcfox’s BJ7001A61NBEV pure electric sedan, which enables single-lane autonomous driving on highways and urban expressways at speeds of up to 80 km/h. The approval signals China’s transition of L3 autonomous driving from testing to early-stage commercial deployment. [China Star Market, in Chinese]
