Current research on autonomous vehicle technology (AV), its deployment and advantages, mostly focuses on deep learning, connected vehicles, and their benefits in heavily urbanised areas and megalopolis. This accent on the urban environment and its constant update inevitably leaves out rural areas, gradually creating an ever-widening gap that might become impossible to fill. At the same time, research on AV infrastructure readiness only looks at technical requirements, without considering social or environmental factors. The purpose of this study is to develop a composite Automated Driveability Index (ADI) that integrates social and landscape character metrics through a multi criteria GIS analysis of rural road networks, with Ireland as a case study. The proposed index sets to assess AV deployment readiness in the rural context, but also to bridge the planning gap between the urban and the rural scale by understanding infrastructure capacity and adaptation impacts. Finally, the ADI not only seeks to comprehensively reflect the current state of road infrastructure, but also to serve as a tool for a more just and equitable infrastructure and landscape development.