US Safety Authority Report on Automated Driving
NHTSA, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, has issued a report on automated driving, looking at identifying potential barriers and challenges for the certification of automated vehicles. The report was produced by the John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, which does research for the Transportation Department.
“There are certain designs for which there are relatively few current regulatory obstacles,” Gordon Trowbridge, a spokesman for NHTSA, said at the briefing in mid March where the report was presented. “That means that we need operational guidance, model state policy, out there to help guide the operation and deployment of vehicles that may be relatively close to the road.”
The Volpe study looks at existing federal motor vehicle safety standards and whether those laws will impede the introduction of self-driving technologies. It didn’t examine state laws, which govern driver qualifications, insurance requirements, and other issues.
In an update to U.S. efforts to promote autonomous vehicle technology, Trowbridge said NHTSA was planning pilot programs across the country to test vehicles, working with states on developing new model laws, and evaluating federal regulations for what changes may be required.
The agency is also hosting two forums in April to gather public input on the issue, the first on 8 April in Washington and another at an undetermined location in California.
NHTSA Report “Review of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) for Automated Vehicles”
NHTSA Press Release on US DoT meetings on automated vehicles
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In: Connectivity & Automation, Safety