As a first step, the US Transportation Department, in its most comprehensive statement yet on autonomous vehicles, has issued a set of voluntary guidelines and urged automakers to certify that their highly automated vehicles are ready for public roads.
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Industry groups on Tuesday praised the administration’s call for federal standards for self-driving vehicles, instead of allowing states to set their own rules.
Ride-hailing giant Uber began trials in Pittsburgh last week to let its most loyal customers order rides from driverless cars through their smartphone app. Google has been testing self-driving cars in Mountain View, California, and rivals including Apple are also exploring similar technology.
To make sure these cars won’t run amok, the US Department of Transportation this week issued a new policy for automated vehicles. Government officials say autonomous vehicles will make transportation safer, more accessible, more efficient and cleaner. It will include a 15 point “Safety Assessment” which will serve as a guide for manufacturers, developers and other organizations and will need to be complied with before putting vehicles on the road.
“A federal approach to the self-driving industry will be key to enhancing motor vehicle safety while continuing to promote USA leadership, competitiveness and innovation”, coalition general counsel David Strickland said in a release.
The Obama administration is considering seeking power to review and approve technology for self-driving cars before they hit the road, in an effort to create a uniform national approach to autonomous vehicle regulation.
Balancing innovation and safety was emphasized by President Obama in an editorial published Monday in The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette about self-driving cars.
“Strides in this technology have the potential to improve safety on our roads and reduce congestion in urban areas”, the company said. Google has been testing driverless vehicles in that state for a while. Riders will be able to opt in if they want a self-driving auto, and rides will be free to those willing to do it, spokesman Matt Kallman said.
States have authority over licensing, traffic laws and enforcement rules as well as insurance regulations that will affect the operation and testing of autonomous vehicles across the country. Recent news coverage of fatal crashes involving Tesla’s Autopilot semi-autonomous system has heightened the debate. Some may require congressional action and some may be under current laws.
Strickland said in the case of this technology, it’s not sufficient to leave in place a regulatory patchwork during a multi-year rule-making process. “When the human being is operating the vehicle, the conventional state laws would apply”. Obama’s opinion piece also comes on the day the government announced a new regulatory framework amid the rapid rise of self-driving automobile technology.
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Bryant Walker Smith, a former transportation engineer who teaches transportation and technology law at the University of SC, found the agency’s attitude encouraging in that it wants to be faster and more flexible in dealing with developers working to design self-driving vehicles.
