Self-drive cars in a pilot study to slash commuter agony

Since robotaxis have fewer accidents than human drivers, they are almost certainly saving lives.

Unlike private cars, they can be in near-continuous use; the more popular they become, the more they will free up space and make urban life more comfortable. In many places, nowadays regulation is a roadblock to self-driving taxis and some restrictions slow the development of the tech itself. In America, firms need approval from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to deviate from federal standards by, say, building a car without pedals or a steering wheel, both of which are more useful to a human than to an AI driving system.

The robotaxi boom raises many questions: when tech automates a profession, what happens to human workers? You might think that drivers are doomed. In fact, the rise of autonomy has played out in two different ways. First, it has raised overall taxi demand in San Francisco, limiting job losses. Second, it has catered to a lucrative corner of the market. According to official data, in 2024 the number of people in San Francisco working for “taxi and limousine service” firms grew by 7% against a year earlier.

Total pay in the industry rose by 14%. Figures from the city indicate the number of regular taxi trips is about the same as last year. As self-driving cars enter the marketplace, they will expand the market. Yet so far only a few European countries are even testing them. In Germany robocabs must be always monitored by a human. Such policies stem from two concerns: that robotaxis could crash into pedestrians or oncoming traffic; and that they will displace human workers, who unions demand that they must be protected. Europe tends to consider safety first. Regulators are right to require that new technology be thoroughly tested.

Yet the impact on taxi drivers must be set against the benefits to a wider group: in San Francisco, there are hundreds of riders and residents, yet the relationship between new and old systems can be surprising. In San Francisco, robotaxis are replacing private cars rather than manned taxis. Could this statistic be tested in a pilot scheme in Gozo, hoping that if successful, it may lead to less congestion in villages?

Consider the daily nightmare for drivers – to find parking spaces is becoming unbearable in Victoria since there is no serious planning for village parking facilities, partly because drivers expect free spaces (no parking meters exist). Once permits are granted for the construction of additional flats, showrooms, hotels, or restaurants, licensed developers are not required to undertake any serious planning for central car parking complexes.

A heavy reliance on cars is linked to the convenience of using personal vehicles – this is undeniable right. Notice how temperatures are rising, and pressures are mounting on commuters due to the constant ubiquitous traffic that has wiped out any trace of tranquillity we once knew. It is a partial consolation that Budget 2026 is proposing a multi-level car park in central Victoria.

We can no longer afford the convenience of those few who want to be able to park (or even double park, a common occurrence) their cars right outside the address they visit. In places like China, the USA and some locations in northern Europe, such new technology is slowly taking to the roads, and people are not sure what to make of it. Is it safe? If slowly introduced here – how will it get accepted along with other road-users in Malta?

Will it really shake us to reconsider the way we commute and will it reduce time wasted in blocked traffic. These questions are being raised in many countries, and there is no single solution that fits all situations. Countries including Australia, China, India and the Philippines expect developers to create adequate parking spaces whenever they construct a new building.

That solution would be like an Alice in Wonderland dream for tiny Malta. Any long-term solution for a tiny island with more than 62 cars imported daily (added to a fleet of over 442,000 ICE vehicles) highlights the need for a serious study such as the one Transport Malta financed three years ago with the publication of a Mass transit underground solution (costing over €6 billion) and possibly now merged into Vision 2050.

Realistically, we are at a stage where Malta’s traffic congestion is no longer an annoyance but a crisis – and crises can only be solved with some difficult decisions. In the past decade, the island has witnessed a sudden explosion in population, resulting in a cascading increase of daily commuting rides. Is the future introduction of self-driving cars alien to Malta? Exactly similar objections were posed at the turn of the century, when the first motor cars rumbled onto village roads.

Now in a modern world, AVs are poised to rewrite the rules of transport. Meditate how Budget 2026 has pioneered a mentality to change the status quo.

George M. Mangion is a senior partner at PKF Malta 

gmm@pkfmalta.com