Spain's Directorate General of Traffic has granted WeRide, Uber, and fleet operator Avomo the country's first national permit for Level 4 autonomous passenger vehicles on public roads1,2,4,8. The authorization, designated FVA-02/2026 under Spain's ES-AV testing framework, covers 20 supervised test vehicles — not paid driverless rides.
The permit allows the three companies to begin mapping, route validation, and operational readiness testing across high-demand areas of Greater Madrid. Each of the 20 WeRide GXR vehicles will carry an onboard vehicle specialist during the initial phase6. Spain's official registry showed zero kilometers recorded under the authorization as of September 10.
First EU clearance for the GXR
The approval marks the first national-level clearance for WeRide's GXR autonomous vehicle anywhere in the European Union. WeRide CFO and head of international Jennifer Li called Madrid "a key gateway for our European expansion". The permit is WeRide's ninth autonomous driving authorization worldwide, with the company now holding permits in China, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium, France, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and the United States7.
Commercial robotaxi services in Madrid are expected to begin before the end of 2026, contingent on the companies completing deployment preparations and meeting outstanding operational and regulatory requirements. Passengers would request rides through the Uber app.
Madrid in the broader partnership
Madrid is the fourth city covered under the WeRide-Uber strategic partnership, which targets 15 cities worldwide and tens of thousands of autonomous vehicles by 2030. Uber autonomous mobility and delivery global head Sarfraz Maredia said "the Madrid region is quickly establishing itself as one of Europe's most forward-looking environments for autonomous mobility".
Avomo, the autonomous driving division of Moove Cars Group, handles fleet operations in the partnership. Avomo already manages roughly 400 autonomous vehicles in Austin and Atlanta with more than 200 specialists. Moove raised $250 million at a $2.1 billion valuation in August to run robotaxi fleets.
The Madrid permit arrives amid a broadening European autonomous-vehicle push. Uber and Wayve launched supervised autonomous rides in London earlier in September. Pony.ai and Verne began fully driverless robotaxi passenger testing on public roads in Zagreb on September 1011. WeRide entered Denmark in August through a partnership with GreenMobility, its first Nordic market, with a 2027 robotaxi plan.
ANALYSIS The gap between the companies' framing of a national "operating permit" and the registry's classification of "testing authorized" with zero kilometers logged underscores how early this deployment remains. The permit opens a regulatory pathway in one of the EU's larger mobility markets, but the 20-vehicle supervised fleet is a mapping and validation exercise, not a commercial service.