Self-Driving Cars Clear a Hurdle, With Computer Called Driver
NHTSA responds to a query from Google’s autonomous-car program
Google's plan for an autonomous vehicle cleared a major hurdle on Tuesday when federal regulators ruled that the computer that operates the car may qualify as the "driver." Photo: AP
Federal highway regulators, aiming to help companies figure out how to meet safety standards when designing cars, are willing to consider a computer running an autonomous vehicle as the “driver.”
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s decision, coming in response to a query from an official with Alphabet Inc.’sGoogle X self-driving car program, will likely provide flexibility in meeting Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards that govern a range of design requirements. For instance, the location of a turn signal stock and how an accelerator pedal functions are regulated by these standards.
These rules were crafted without consideration of a self-driving vehicle, and Alphabet needed clarification since it will develop vehicle cockpits for passengers who let a computer make driving decisions.
The move is a win for the Google autonomous-car program, which has been under development since 2009, and other companies looking to build vehicles that don’t require a driver. The decision, however, doesn’t give unlimited leeway to designers—NHTSA said the Mountain View, Calif., company has to ask for an exemption from regulation that have specifications meant to protect physical drivers.
Alphabet can press for changes to the law since NHTSA interprets rules instead of making them. The agency posted its decision on its website. An Alphabet spokesman declined to comment.
While many auto makers are introducing vehicles with semiautonomous features and planning to develop that technology aggressively, the Google car design takes a driver out of the equation entirely. Alphabet recently began testing the vehicles in Seattle, the third U.S. city where it operates fully autonomous cars.
NHTSA’s decision could help the entire auto industry, but it is a direct vote of confidence for Alphabet. The company is facing a challenge in its home state of California, which has drafted regulations prohibiting a car that is designed with no mechanism by which a driver can take over from a computer. California would also require a specific license to offer such vehicles.
“We are surprised at how soon the federal agency has given such recognition to this technology as potentially replacing a human operator in such a critical transport system,” said Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas in a note to investors. “In our view, this points to the agency’s desire to address the large and growing incidence of motor vehicle-related fatalities and injuries on U.S. roads.”
Chris Urmson, the technical leader of the Google car program, recently spoke at a hearing of California’s Department of Motor Vehicles to ask that the proposed rule be changed to allow Alphabet to move forward with plans. The company aims to open up driving to the young, old and disabled.
The Obama administration last month proposed a $3.9 billion program to invest in testing and researching autonomous vehicles. The investment would span a decade.
“Our interpretation that the self-driving computer system of a car could, in fact, be a driver, is significant,” said Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx in a statement. “But the burden remains on self-driving car manufacturers to prove that their vehicles meet rigorous federal safety standards.”
