The Trump administration announced its first policy moves to remove what it sees as regulatory barriers facing autonomous vehicles, following through on a goal set by advisers to President Donald Trump.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is updating rules to allow domestically produced autonomous vehicles to qualify for exemptions to U.S. auto safety standards previously offered only to imports, the agency said on Thursday. NHTSA also will continue to require carmakers and other companies to report crashes involving self-driving systems, while loosening some reporting requirements, it said.
The immediate impact of the measures is unclear. But they show that the administration is taking initial steps to advance a key priority of some of Trump’s advisers.
Current federal rules pose significant roadblocks for companies looking to commercialize self-driving vehicles without steering wheels or pedals in large quantities. Those policies directly conflict with Tesla Inc.’s plan to begin producing large numbers of autonomous robotaxis designed without driver controls next year.
Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, who has spearheaded a sweeping push to cut costs in the U.S. government, last year called for a federal approval process for autonomous vehicles. Members of Trump’s transition team also planned to make creating a regulatory framework for autonomous vehicles a top priority, Bloomberg has reported.
NHTSA is “actively engaged in developing a multi-faceted regulatory framework” for vehicle with automated driving systems, NHTSA Chief Counsel Peter Simshauser said in letter made public on Thursday.
In the initial actions announced on Thursday, NHTSA said it is updating a government order put in place under President Joe Biden that forced carmakers and technology companies to report information about crashes involving the use of automated driving technologies. The requirement applies to cars made by Tesla, which account for a significant proportion of the collisions reported under the order.
Trump was urged by advisers during his transition to repeal the government order, Bloomberg has reported.
NHTSA said the changes to the order will “maintain safety benefits of reporting while reducing unnecessary burdens.”
Top photo: Traffic on I-95 highway in Miami, Florida, on Monday, July 29, 2024. Photographer: Martina Tuaty/Bloomberg.
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