“We won’t hesitate to protect the American public’s safety”, President Barack Obama wrote in a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette op-ed published Monday. And he may not have to after he leaves office either.
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The era in which self-driving cars are dominant is not far away as one would think, already there have been demands to implement rules for self-driving cars so as to bring them to the roadway as safely as possible. Google has proposed fully autonomous vehicles without driver controls. The focus of the policy will be to facilitate the “responsible introduction” of self-driving vehicles in order to make transportation safer, cleaner, more accessible and more efficient, as per the statement issued by the White House on Monday.
“Ninety-four percent of crashes on US roadways are caused by a human choice or error”, says NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind.
In the past six months, self-driving vehicles have seen a jump in use. Less congested, less polluted roads.
“The quickest way to slam the brakes on innovation is for the public to lose confidence in the safety of new technologies”, he wrote. But we have to get it right. Furthermore, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will issue a bulletin clarifying its recall authority in the case of vehicle defects. “So it’s critical that we also provide new resources and job training to prepare every American for the good-paying jobs of tomorrow”, he said, alluding to fears among cab drivers and those working for ride-hailing services who fear the technology will leave them jobless.
In somewhat contradictory fashion, officials also said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is examining whether it should have “pre-market approval” authority, in which the government inspects and approves new technologies like autonomous vehicles.
The Federal Automated Vehicle Policy, which the government considers a “proactive approach”, is split into four parts: vehicle performance guidance (a 15-point safety assessment); model state policy (delineates federal and state roles); current regulatory tools; and modern regulatory rules.
But the guidelines have remained more open and broad than the typical safety standards applied to traditional, human-driven vehicles.
“Typically, we’d say a auto has to meet X standard in a certain way”, Foxx said.
The much-anticipated policy uses a 15-point safety assessment to set expectations for autonomous vehicle researchers and manufacturers.
The Obama administration said Monday it was considering seeking the power to review and approve technology for self-driving cars before they hit the road and said USA states should not set separate rules.
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Self-driving cars could also cause significant unemployment for Americans who are now paid to drive. Setting safety standards for new motor vehicles and their equipment, and ensuring compliance with the standards would, for example, be a federal responsibility. The DOT addressed a controversial issue, where several states had already enacted self-driving vehicle testing regulations years ahead of the federal government.
