Guidelines for testing autonomous vehicles on public roads here are being worked on by the Government, it has emerged.
The rules will also be supported by a National Connected and Autonomous Vehicle roadmap and plan, as well as a national strategy for Intelligent Transport Systems.
The announcement was made by Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Shane Ross at the opening of the annual meeting of the European Transport Conference in Dublin.
"We are working with industry shareholders, other Government departments and state agencies to develop guidelines," Mr Ross said in a statement.
He added that public confidence in autonomous vehicles must be fostered.
Autonomous driving is considered to be the future of mobility, with all the big manufacturers now working on self-driving vehicles.
It is thought that they will improve efficiency of the transport infrastructure, traffic management and mobility while at the same time reducing greenhouse gases.
In many parts of the world autonomous cars are now being tested on public roads.
Ireland had been criticised by some experts for taking a back seat in the space by not encouraging such testing here.
At present self-driving vehicles are illegal on Irish roads.
