If you’ve seen them roving on the highways of California, know that Google and some automakers, such as Nissan, Tesla Motors, and Honda, are the ones responsible for their safety. The self-driving cars of the future should not need a human driver to control it just in case, but should be the safe, cost-efficient, environmentally-friendly, automated means of transport offering a comfortable and carefree ride.
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The imminent update which will soon be made to the US’ federal self-driving auto policy is an indication of the fact that the rapid development of self-driving cars has apparently prompted federal officials to rethink their stance on the autonomous-driving technology.
According to Tech Crunch, up until today, the regulation with regard to self-driving cars are only at the state level.
In 2013, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued guidance on robot cars where it states to limit the usage of the next generation vehicles for testing purposes.
Google’s Chris Urmson (R) shows a Google self-driving vehicle to U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx (L) and Google Chairman Eric Schmidt (C) at the Google headquarters on February 2, 2015 in Mountain View, California.
It’s unclear what the new policy will be, but Foxx clearly signalled that the technology intrigues him.
Language that the federal government is revisiting specifies that in states where the public can get access to the cars, a licensed driver should be behind the wheel.
In the same way as the technology of self-driving cars has been developed, the perspective of the authorities towards it has also changed. A Google spokesman had no comment on word of the federal review. States other than California, Nevada, Michigan, and Florida are considering the idea. The federal update “reaffirms that the topic is evolving and one worthy of continued discussion and public input”, spokeswoman Melissa Figueroa said. They were due last January 1, but concerns such as proving that the technology is safe have held up those rules.
The nonprofit group Consumer Watchdog has been advocating restraint.
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Consumer Watchdog’s Privacy Project director John M. Simpson said: “Any new policy from NHTSA must continue to put public safety first”.
