RDW, the Dutch vehicle licensing authority, has approved Tesla’s driving assistance system FSD, making the Netherlands the first country in Europe where the technology can be used on public roads.

The agency said in a statement it had researched and tested the Full Self-Driving Supervised system for 18 months, and said if properly used it can make a “positive contribution” to road safety, says Dutch News.

“A vehicle with FSD Supervised is not self-driving. It is a driver-controlled assistance system, which means that the driver remains responsible and must always remain in control,” the agency said.

“Hands therefore do not have to be on the steering wheel, but must be able to take over immediately if necessary.”

The system itself checks if drivers are paying sufficient attention and will signal to drivers that they must show they are alert. “It is therefore not permitted or possible, for example, to read a newspaper while driving,” the agency said.

The RDW will now ask the European Commission to approve the use of the system on roads throughout the EU, which member states will then have to vote on.

The FSD system has been used in the US for some time, but the software is different from that which has been approved for use in the Netherlands, the RDW said.

(Picture: Tesla)