Auto and energy groups are pressuring Congress to establish a national framework for autonomous vehicles after lawmakers failed to approve legislation that would have put more such cars on the road in the last session.
Although more than half of U.S. states have adopted legislation surrounding self-driving vehicles, a federal standard does not yet exist.
Securing America’s Future Energy, an organization seeking to reduce U.S. reliance on oil, urged lawmakers this month to “expedite” the deployment of autonomous vehicles due to the number of deaths caused by motor vehicles. The group cited recent statistics from the National Safety Council that estimate 40,000 motor vehicle deaths in 2018, marking three consecutive years where roadway fatalities have reached or surpassed that number.
“The death toll on our roads has reached epidemic proportions and as 94 percent of crashes are caused by human error, autonomous vehicles are the vaccine,” Securing America’s Future Energy President and CEO Robbie Diamond said in a statement. “It is vital we perfect and deploy this vaccine as soon as possible, because every day we delay is another day that lives are needlessly lost.”
The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers — a group that represents auto manufacturers including Toyota, Ford, and General Motors — also weighed in on the issue and urged House and Senate leaders to establish a federal framework for the safe testing and deployment of autonomous vehicles. They argued the federal framework would “prevent a patchwork of regulations” that could negatively impact American competition and thwart autonomous vehicle research.
Additionally, the group requested an update to the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, which only take into account human drivers.
“Updating these regulations in an expeditious manner is a commonsense step to increase overall roadway safety,” alliance President and CEO Mitch Bainwol wrote.
The group expressed willingness to work with the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee on the matter.
Safety groups led the opposition to Congress’ previous attempt at legislation to regulate driverless vehicles, the AV START, or American Vision for Safer Transportation Through Advancement of Revolutionary Technologies, Act. That bill was introduced by Sens. John Thune, R-S.D., and Gary Peters, D-Mich., and would have required the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to regulate design, construction, and performance of self-driving cars. It would have pre-empted any previously established state laws.
The legislation also would have put state and local governments in charge of overseeing registration, licensing, insurance, and safety and emissions inspections. A similar bill passed in the House in 2017.
Safety groups, which have vowed to work with lawmakers to modify the AV START Act, opposed a provision in the legislation that would have expanded the number of annual exemptions from federal safety standards for driverless cars. To qualify for an exemption, companies would have needed to prove the vehicle was just as safe as, or safer than, nonexempt vehicles operated by humans.
Marc Scribner, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, was disappointed the legislation didn’t pass in December and urged lawmakers to “prioritize passage” of the legislation in this Congress.
“We hope Congress recommits itself to the basic highly automated vehicle legislative framework established in the previous Congress,” Scribner said.
Peters signaled in December that he was “sure” autonomous vehicle legislation would be introduced in the new Congress. In a statement to the Washington Examiner, he noted the federal government must keep up with quickly advancing technology and promised he “will continue working with stakeholders on the next steps to ensure these vehicles can operate safely.”
Meanwhile Thune, who was the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee chairman in the last Congress, said this month he was optimistic about reviving the AV START Act or similar legislation. Additionally, he said he was coordinating with Peters about when to release the legislation and what version of the measure they would unveil.
“We want to get that restarted, no pun intended,” Thune said of the AV START Act during an event with Axios.
“I hope we can close the deal because we really do need to have this sort of framework in place that puts the safety guardrails around the technology,” Thune said. “But the technology is moving, and it’s important for Congress and federal policymakers to keep up with it.”
