(a) Automated driving systems

13. The representative of Japan, Co-Chair of the IWG on ADS, informed WP.29 that GRVA had adopted the draft UN Global Technical Regulation and the draft UN Regulation on ADS, available as informal documents WP.29-198-07 and WP.29-198-09. He noted that the drafts still contained provisions in square brackets, which would be finalized by June 2026, when both regulations would be submitted for consideration and vote. He explained the specificities of the draft regulations, which rely more on the Safety Management System, the safety case, and in-service monitoring and reporting than on strict test methods and pass/fail criteria. He also presented the status reports of the IWG on ADS and the GRVA workshops on ADS (WP.29-198-08 and Add.1). WP.29 requested the secretariat to distribute all four documents with official symbols at its June 2026 session. The representative of the Netherlands (Kingdom of the), acting as ambassador between the IWG sessions and the workshop meetings, informed WP.29 of the progress made on developing the Guidance and Interpretation Document (GID).

14. The representatives of Canada, China, the European Union, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America expressed pride and congratulated GRVA on the outcome achieved. They underlined the importance of maintaining commitment to future work. The representative of OICA conveyed the industry’s satisfaction, highlighting how the outcome bridges the 1958 and 1998 Agreements and different certification regimes. He also stressed the need for further harmonization regarding the use of ADS technologies.

15. The representative of France presented the report of the expert groups on regulatory fitness for ADS (WP.29 198 17 and WP.29-198-18). The report provided an overview of 93 amendment proposals to existing regulations targeted for adoption in June 2026, some of which are still under review by WP.29 subsidiary bodies. He noted that minor editorial discrepancies may remain between GR documents and asked whether WP.29 wished the expert groups to submit informal documents to correct them. WP.29 agreed these would be submitted. He also shared views on activities beyond June 2026, explaining that the expert groups would generally be disbanded after that date, while leaving open the possibility of future work. WP.29 exchanged views on ADS marker lamps, EMC, and the review of L6 and L7 category related regulations. IMMA clarified that their members did not manufacture automated L6/L7 to date and therefore did not consider regulatory amendments to be urgent at this stage. Consequently, IMMA indicated that it would not be in a position to lead regulatory activities in this area but wished nevertheless to be consulted in the discussion.

11. During the consultations, the experts were informed (GRVA-25-26) of the latest developments of the Informal Working Group (IWG) on Automated Driving Systems (ADS). They reviewed the proposals for a new UN Global Technical Regulation and a new UN Regulation on Automated Driving Systems, submitted for adoption by WP.29 in June 2026, as well as the minor updates developed by the IWG on ADS since the last GRVA session. The experts identified that the IWG on ADS had not incorporated the agreed content of working paper ADS-17-08-Rev.2. They therefore prepared revisions to the documents submitted by the IWG on ADS for adoption in June 2026. The experts also reviewed a proposal for amendments to paragraph 2.21., presented by the expert from Sentient Futures, aimed at including animals in the definition of Other Road User (ORU). They noted that the draft regulation already recognized animals as operationally relevant; for example, Annex 5, Table 1, lists animal behaviours with the same level of specificity as pedestrian and cyclist behaviours. Some experts noted that this was a critical definition and questioned whether ADS should be required to respond to, for example, insects. The experts agreed to further explore the proposed amendments to paragraph 2.21. at the next IWG on ADS session, scheduled to take place in Brussels in July 2026. The experts finalized the amendments to the documents constituting the draft regulatory framework on Automated Driving Systems (ADS) submitted for adoption by WP.29 (AC.1 and AC.3) in June 2026. The experts from Canada, China, Japan, the United States of America, the European commission and OICA made statements recalling the process that led to this outcome, the deliberate efforts to ensure inclusiveness, geographical balance and shared ownership of the process, and its significance beyond the field of vehicle regulation.

12. GRVA endorsed the status report (GRVA-25-26) from the Informal Working Group (IWG) on Automated Driving Systems (ADS).

13. GRVA adopted GRVA-25-21/Rev.2, GRVA-25-22/Rev.2 and GRVA-25-23, containing amendments to ECE/TRANS/WP.29/2026/139, ECE/TRANS/WP.29/2026/137 (advance copy made available in April 2026) and ECE/TRANS/WP.29/2026/142, respectively.

14. GRVA requested the secretariat to submit these documents to WP.29, the Administrative Committee of the 1958 Agreement (AC.1), and the Executive Committee of the 1998 Agreement (AC.3) for consideration and voting in June 2026.