The Malaysian government is considering amending laws to support the digitalisation and development of autonomous vehicles, local news reported.

"We need to take steps to see the future because maybe now it is not yet mainstream. But maybe in 10, 20 years, most of our public transportation systems will no longer use humans as drivers. They can be autonomous. Now, most of them still need drivers," said transport minister Anthony Loke.

He said that the government is taking the initial steps to assess the extent to which this can be implemented before deciding what legislative amendments can be made to support the digitalisation of vehicles. Loke added that there is currently no timeline as the proof of concept (PoC) for autonomous public transport is still being conducted.

"At the ministry of transport, we are ready to assist. I believe this matter needs to be examined through examples from other countries that already have a legal framework in place. So far, Malaysia does not yet have a legal framework for autonomous vehicles, so we need to look at examples from abroad as a reference," Loke said following a 5G demonstration carried out on eMoovit Technology's autonomous bus earlier today 9 September.

He added that the ministry of transport is prepared to facilitate the development of autonomous vehicles in terms of legislation. "We also need to look at its commercialisation, because it's pointless to have a legal framework without its practical application," he said.