10. The representative of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Co-Chair of the IWG on ADS, presented the status report (GRVA-24-27) of the group. He reported on the progress made since the last GRVA session, including the submission of two documents containing the draft UN Regulation and the draft UN Global Technical Regulation (GTR) on ADS. He outlined the planned activities of the group until June 2026. He suggested that GRVA adopt the documents, and submit them to WP.29 at its June 2026 session and noted that a further informal document was expected to be submitted to GRVA for review in May 2026 to cover outstanding item(s) on DSSAD.

11. The representative of OICA welcomed the achievements and supported the way forward. The representative of Canada highlighted the success of the new approach chosen by GRVA and welcomed the submitted documents. The secretariat mentioned the administrative and operational risks of proceeding with an informal document and advised keeping it short. The representative of China noted that, beyond the DSSAD provisions, Annex 5 would also require attention. The representative of AAPC indicated that the DSSAD activities would likely be finalized in February 2026 at the Seoul meeting. The representative of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland assessed that the informal document would likely be short, containing one or two pages of amendments.

12. The secretariat detailed the content of informal documents GRVA-24-24 and GRVA-24-24/Add.1, which provided the written reports on the activities of the IWG on ADS meetings and the workshops. GRVA requested the secretariat to provide them to WP.29 and the Executive Committee of the 1998 Agreement (AC.3) as informal document for their March 2026 session.

13. GRVA reviewed informal documents GRVA-24-28 and GRVA-24-29 amending ECE/TRANS/WP.29/GRVA/2026/2 and ECE/TRANS/WP.29/GRVA/2026/3 respectively.

14. GRVA requested the secretariat to transmit ECE/TRANS/WP.29/GRVA/2026/2 as amended by GRVA-24-28 to WP.29 as informal document for consideration in March 2026 and as official document to WP.29 and AC.3 for consideration and vote in June 2026.

15. The representative of Switzerland raised an interpretation question on para. 17 in the draft UN Regulation concerning the competencies of Type Approval Authorities and if they would apply to “receiving Approval Authorities”. The representative of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland explained that the requirement would only apply to “granting Approval Authorities”.

16. The representative of France supported ECE/TRANS/WP.29/GRVA/2026/3 as amended by GRVA-24-29. He thanked the Co-Chairs, the secretaries, ambassadors and all other stakeholders involved in the development of these documents. He marked this outcome as a milestone for GRVA and for the automotive sector.

17. The representative of the United States of America echoed the statement of France and noted the significance of the IWG on ADS work. She announced that the United States of America was proud of the work done, useful for industry and consumers and therefore intended to publish the draft GTR for public comments.

18. The representative of Japan echoed the statements by France and the United States of America. He acknowledged the remaining items to be addressed but noted that the regulations would contribute to the safe development of ADS.

19. The representative of Norway supported and welcomed this outcome. He hoped that industry would use it and safely deploy ADS on the roads in the coming years.

20. The representative of Australia acknowledged that this forum had provided opportunities for them to participate and influence the work. He welcomed that it recognized the specificity of his Country, a Contracting Party to the 1958 Agreement that does not issue type approvals.

21. The representatives of the European Commission, Germany and Sweden also expressed words of appreciation.

22. GRVA requested the secretariat to transmit ECE/TRANS/WP.29/GRVA/2026/3 as amended by GRVA-24-29 to WP.29 as informal document for consideration in March 2026 and as official document to WP.29 and to the Administrative Committee of the 1958 Agreement (AC.1) for consideration and vote in June 2026.

23. The representative of Canada recalled the start of these activities a decade ago, with the WP.29 IWG on Intelligent Transport System/Automated Driving (ITS/AD) activities and the Working Party on Brake and Running Gear (GRRF) activities on Automatically Commanded Steering Function (ACSF). He proudly acknowledged the achievement and mentioned the work ahead with the monitoring of the implementation. He committed to support these activities. He highlighted the importance of these activities as the future of automobile would be affected by ADS.

24. The representative of China welcomed that the documents are submitted to WP.29. She appreciated the work done but also noted that more needed to be done in the future. She provided insights on the corresponding national regulation, based on the GTR draft and with additional and more detailed provisions, in conformity with the national regulatory system.

25. The representative of OICA welcomed the documents and noted that GRVA had achieved in a short time, the creation of the ADS certification basis.