Trump's Deregulation Could Speed Up Self-Driving Car Development
The Trump administration is cutting regulations to help the self-driving car industry, which could speed up the development and release of these vehicles. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy recently announced that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will introduce three new rules next year. These rules are designed to update the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards for vehicles with "automated driving systems."
The goal here is to make it easier for automakers to develop and sell self-driving cars. As Duffy said, "America must lead the way in transportation innovation. If we don’t, our adversaries will fill the void."
Currently, many regulations assume that self-driving cars will always have a human driver present. For instance, Aurora Innovation, an automated trucking company, had a dispute with the Department of Transportation because they were required to deploy roadside warning devices when stopped, even though they don't have human drivers.
The government seems to be taking a stance on removing the need for these kinds of outdated requirements, which will hopefully reduce costs and enhance safety, according to NHTSA Chief Counsel Peter Simshauser.
Relaxing some of these rules might seem like a good thing for innovation. I think, however, that it's also important to remember that this technology is still relatively new. Even Tesla, with all its resources, still needs human drivers in its robotaxis. It will be interesting to see how it all develops.
Source: Gizmodo