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State Driverless Policy Workshop This May

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Burney Simpson

A one-day workshop on state policy towards automated vehicles will be held May 18 at the University of Maryland in College Park near Washington, D.C.

The workshop will identify the major issues the states will need to address as they write laws on “advanced automated vehicles (sometimes called autonomous, self-driving, or driverless vehicles).”

The National Transportation Center is sponsoring “Automated Vehicle Policy and Regulation: A State Perspective Workshop” at the school. The event runs from 8:45 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The other sponsors are the Center for Advanced Transportation Technology, the I-95 Corridor Coalition, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

The graphic for this article is from the National Conference of State Legislators website that tracks autonomous/self-driving vehicles legislation. It is updated as of April 8. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is scheduled to release policy guidelines for the states this summer.

FRAMING THE ISSUES

The Maryland workshop features a number of nationally-known experts on driverless vehicles.

Bryant Walker Smith, developer of the Center for Internet and Society website that tracks state legislative activity on driverless technology, will be on the opening panel framing the issues. Smith will be joined by Robert Peterson, co-author of A Look at the Legal Framework for Driverless Vehicles (See “Send Lawyers, Guns and Driverless Vehicles”), and Frank Douma, who will discuss Minnesota’s initiative on mobility and people with disabilities.

A second panel with look at major policy influences. Mike Scrudato, senior vice president with Munich Reinsurance, will discuss insurance, while Rand Corp.’s James M. Anderson will consider a single federal policy vs. a 50 state approach.

A third panel offers state legislators active in autonomous vehicle legislation. State Sen. Mark Green of Tennessee (See “Tennessee Senate Scheduled to Vote on Proposed Driverless Law SB 1561 This Week”), and Del. Glenn Davis of Virginia will discuss their recent proposals (See “Careful Steps on Driverless Laws for Tennessee, Virginia”).

There will also be discussion on the opportunities for merging energy and transportation issues. The seminar will conclude with remarks from Alain Kornhauser, director of Princeton University’s Transportation Research Program.

The event is in the Howard Frank Auditorium/Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland.

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California Pols to DMV: Relax Draft Driverless Regs

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Burney Simpson

Legislation moving in the California State Assembly calls for the Department of Motor Vehicles to step back from the draft regulations on driverless vehicles it announced in December.

Two proposals take shots at the California DMV’s oversight of autonomous vehicles.

The General Assembly chamber passed the third Thursday with a unanimous 71-0 vote.

That proposal is not confrontational, asking for an exemption to DMV rules so fully-autonomous shuttles can operate at a business park near Silicon Valley, a first for the U.S.

GoogcarCalif2But the overwhelming approval of the proposal indicates that legislators want the DMV to step back from its tough approach to driverless regs, according to the sponsor, Assemblywoman Susan A. Bonilla.

“This (bill) could prod and show the DMV the interests of the legislature,” she said. “The state wants to move forward on driverless vehicles.”

The proposals follow Google’s public disagreement with portions of the DMV’s draft, and its announcement that it would test its driverless vehicles in Kirkland, Washington, and Phoenix. (See “Google Expands Self-Driving Car Tests to Phoenix, Arizona”).

The DMV’s draft called for driverless vehicles to have steering wheels, pedals and other traditional equipment, that a driver be in the vehicle, and that the driver have a special certificate for operating the cars.

The agency said that the rules must be strict to ensure public safety while the technology evolves.

Google said the draft failed to recognize the rising capabilities of the technology, and would make it near-impossible to develop vehicles that could be used by the blind, people with disabilities, and others who can’t drive.

TEXAS-SIZE COMPETITION

The first proposal that challenges the DMV is by Assemblywoman Ling Ling Chang, a Republican from Diamond Bar.

The Transportation Committee on Monday approved Chang’s AB 2682 that would require the California DMV to hold public hearings if the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposes a model state policy on driverless vehicles.

GoogCarAustin2NHTSA has already pledged to meet a July deadline for finishing the policy document. It held a public hearing on the guidelines on Friday in Washington, D.C., and plans a second on April 27 at Stanford University in Silicon Valley.

In effect, Chang’s proposal would require the DMV to openly debate the model state policy.

Chang said in a release her bill is designed to make California more competitive so it can grow driverless business activity in the state.

“We are competing with business-friendly states like Texas to keep the tech in California so we need to make sure we don’t lose another opportunity for keeping jobs in California – and potential federal funding,” Chang said.

Google began testing in Texas last year, and Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has asked Congress for $4 billion over 10 years to speed the development of driverless vehicles.

Chang’s proposal now goes to the Appropriations Committee for a cost review.

The second proposal, AB 2866, is from Assemblyman Mike Gatto, a Burbank Democrat, who issued a fact sheet that echoed Chang’s points.

Gatto argues that the DMV’s draft rules would “effectively render autonomous vehicles illegal” but his bill “will ensure that California is not outcompeted by other states in the launch of this unique technology” so it can “reap the economic and public health benefits of autonomous vehicles.”

AB 2866 calls for the California DMV and the state Highway Patrol to hold a safety feasibility test of driverless vehicles on public roads in three counties. The test would include the participation of one or more autonomous vehicle manufacturers.

Gatto’s legislation is scheduled to be heard April 18 by the Transportation Committee. 

AN EASYMILE FOR GOMENTUM?

The proposal that earned unanimous approval relates to the GoMentum Station vehicle test bed in Concord operated by the Contra Costa Transportation Authority. GoMentum offers 5,000 acres and 20 miles of roads, and clients have included Honda and Mercedes.

Sponsor Bonilla, a Democrat from Concord, says she introduced AB 1592 so a business park near GoMentum could test driverless shuttles that do not have an operator, a steering wheel, a brake pedal, or an accelerator.

WEpod driverless shuttleGoMentum partnered with France-based EasyMile to operate two shuttles in what they say is the first use of Shared Driverless Vehicles in the U.S.

In practical terms the shuttles will cross over some public roads as they operate in the 685-acre Bishop Ranch business park in San Ramon, says Bonilla. The bill allows the shuttles to travel on the public roads even though they are driverless.

Bonilla believes the success of the proposal tells the DMV to rethink its draft regulations.

“There was some consternation towards the DMV. They took too long, and (the regs) were outdated,” said Bonilla. “We just got 71 legislators to move (my bill) to the Senate. That shows the interest of the state legislature.”

Bonilla’s proposal must still be approved by the state Senate and signed by the governor.

 

Photo – California Republic by Hakan Dahlstrom, 2009.

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Google Expands Self-Driving Car Tests to Phoenix, Arizona

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Jennifer van der Kleut

News outlets are reporting this week that Google’s Alphabet Inc. is expanding its self-driving car program to the Phoenix, Arizona Metro area.

This makes the fourth U.S. location one can find Google’s famous self-driving pod cars being tested on public roads.

Google cars have been logging mile after mile in Mountain View, California near Google’s headquarters for more than six years; recently, Google added Austin, Texas, and just two months ago, Kirkland, Washington.

Multiple news outlets reported in February that Google was eyeing four new cities to expand driverless testing to after a Federal Communications Commission document indicated the company was applying for the necessary permits, though the locations of the new cities were redacted. Kirkland and Phoenix appear to be the first two of the four new cities.

In addition, Google executives admitted earlier this month that they are eyeing the United Kingdom for potential testing in the future, as the British government has been lobbying the tech giant for some time.

So, why Phoenix? Google representatives told AutoNews.com that Phoenix’s proximity to desert and the resulting dry, dusty air make Phoenix an important place to test their driverless cars.

“Arizona is known as a place where research and development is welcome, innovation can thrive, and companies can set up roots,” said Jennifer Haroon, head of business operations for the Google Self-Driving Car project. “[And] the Phoenix area has distinct desert conditions, which will help us better understand how our sensors and cars handle extreme temperatures and dust in the air.”

Reuters and Venture Beat report that Google test car operators have already hit the streets of Phoenix in four Lexus RX450h SUVs, and are busy creating “a detailed map of streets, lane markers, traffic signals and curb heights.”

Google has been an integral part of the federal government’s process toward ironing out a consistent national policy for driverless and connected vehicle technology. Most recently, Chris Urmson wrote the Department of Transportation a letter proposing that the company, as well as any other companies working on developing autonomous cars, should be allowed to sell driverless cars to consumers if they can pass a federal safety test.

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UPDATE: Tennessee Senate Votes on Driverless Proposal SB 1561

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Jennifer van der Kleut

Editor’s Note: The Tennessee Senate passed an amended version of this proposal 30-0 on April 13, and it heads to the House side.

The state Senate of Tennessee is expected to vote this week on whether to approve a proposed bill that would legalize testing of driverless cars on public roads-and industry analysts are optimistic it will pass.

According to the local Tennessee news website BrentwoodHomepage.com, the bill, SB 1561, “will be the first in the U.S. to codify the definition of autonomy, expanding the definition of a driver to include that a human isn’t required to control the vehicle.”

The bill, authored by state Senator Mark Green (R-Clarksville), has been revised several times to painstakingly define the technology, news reports said.

To ensure the utmost safety, and also streamline the process for testing autonomous cars in the state, the bill establishes a new certification program that will be administered by the Department of Safety for AV manufacturers to go through before they can be sold, tested or operated in the state.

In addition to being a positive step in transportation progress for the state-one Green hopes will encourage automakers to start manufacturing autonomous cars in Tennessee-SB 1561 will also generate a little bit of revenue for the state. The bill requires the state’s Department of Safety to establish a fee for applications for autonomous vehicles, including a 1-cent-per-mile driven tax structure for autonomous vehicles with two axles, and a $0.026-per-mile driven tax structure for those with more than two axles, BrentwoodHomepage.com reports.

Director of Audi Government Affairs in D.C., Brad Stertz, told BrentwoodHomepage.com he thinks laws like Green’s bill are smart, and the right way to go about moving toward and preparing for autonomous vehicles at a reasonable pace.

“[We’ve seen] lawmakers want to regulate the cars that might be here in 25 years, not the ones that will be here in two years,” Stertz said. “If you try to regulate that far in the future, you don’t know where technology is going to go and how fast it will advance. A key thing is that we don’t think this technology will evolve any faster than the comfort level of the customers who will be using it.”

Tennessee’s state senate is currently scheduled to vote on SB 1561 Wednesday morning, April 6. If approved, autonomous vehicles could begin testing in the state by January.

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California Ratchets Up the Driverless Battle

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The battle among states for driverless-vehicle technology and testing dollars is heating up.

California Assemblywoman Ling Ling Chang last week introduced a proposal that she says will keep the state in the forefront of developing autonomous technology.

The Republican from Diamond Bar introduced AB 2682 that would require the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles to hold hearings if the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposes a model state policy on driverless vehicles.

NHTSA has said it plans to announce the policy this year.

California has been a driverless leader with Mountain View-based Google working on its vehicles for over five years in the Golden State.

However, Google has been frustrated by driverless proposals by the California DMV that would require equipment like steering wheels, and that drivers have special certificates to operate the vehicles.

Google believes the proposals are onerous while the DMV argues the rules should be tough as the revolutionary technology evolves.

BUSINESS-FRIENDLY STATES

Chang’s proposal presumably would open up the DMV’s rule-making process.

“The DMV is not exactly known for being an incubator for high-tech,” Chang said in a press release. “We are competing with business-friendly states like Texas to keep the tech in California so we need to make sure we don’t lose another opportunity for keeping jobs in California – and potential federal funding.”

Google began testing in Texas last year, and U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has asked for $4 billion to speed the development of driverless vehicles.

States are also competing for testing dollars.

California’s Silicon Valley is home to the GoMentum Station and its 20 miles of test roads. Michigan opened the 32-acre Mcity facility in Ann Arbor in July, and plans to develop the massive Willow Run site in Ypsilanti (See “Michigan Launches 330-Acre Autonomous Vehicle Test Site”).

Another major player is the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. It is expanding its well-established auto testing operations in Blacksburg to the highly-congested Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.

TENNESSEE – AIN’T NO PLACE I’D RATHER BE

Also last week, the Tennessee Senate’s Transportation and Safety Committee approved SB 1561 that would allow driverless testing in the state. The full Senate is to hear the bill this Wednesday.

Tennessee state Sen. Mark Green said he introduced the proposal to encourage auto OEMs to expand their manufacturing in the state (See “Careful Steps on Driverless Laws for Tennessee, Virginia”).

Tennessee is already home to plants operated by GM, Nissan, and Volkswagen, along with the Tier 1 supplier Denso.

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Google to DOT: We should be able to sell driverless cars if they can pass federal road test

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Jennifer van der Kleut

News outlets are reporting that Google executive Chris Urmson sent the U.S. federal government a proposal Friday suggesting that self-driving cars should be legal on public roads, and legal to sell to consumers, if they are able to pass a road test satisfying federal safety standards.

Furthermore, Google’s proposal said the rule, if approved, should apply to any company manufacturing self-driving cars, not just Google.

“Google would rather not wade through government bureaucracy and red tape, so it has penned a proposal that will hopefully allow autonomous vehicles to be federally approved for road use sooner,” Hot Hardware reported Saturday.

“It’s hard to argue with Google’s reasoning,” Hot Hardware writers said, appearing to agree with Google.

This past week, representatives from several top companies such as Google, General Motors, Lyft, Duke University and Delphi Automotive, which are all heavily invested in autonomous car research and development, appeared on Capitol Hill to testify before members of Congress on the merits of the rising technology.

While it appears some progress was made in the meeting, in the same week, a new report from the Department of Transportation made headlines.

In its efforts to create a consistent national policy regarding self-driving cars, the DOT proposed that any self-driving cars on public roads must include a driver’s seat, steering wheel and brake pedal.

This was met with disappointment from Google, whose cars are famously steering wheel-less.

Engadget reports that the proposal was sent in an informal letter to top DOT officials on Friday, but that an official draft proposal has not been submitted to legislators yet.

Nevertheless, Google representative Johnny Luu told the Associated Press that the tech company’s proposal was “the beginning of a process” to create “the right framework that will allow deployment in a safe and timely manner.”

If approved, analysts see the proposed road tests as a “fast-track” approach to getting self-driving cars to market, as opposed to the current, more lengthy process automakers usually have to abide by.

“The typical process for making new rules takes years,” Associated Press reporter Justin Pritchard reports.

There is no word yet on what legislators think of Google’s idea.

“The department will take input from lots of stakeholders as we develop [a] plan,” Gordon Trowbridge, spokesman for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is overseeing the regulation of self-driving technology within the broader Department of Transportation, told the Associated Press last week.

 

 

 

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Feds: Driverless Cars Must Have Driver’s Seat, Steering Wheel, Brake Pedals

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Jennifer van der Kleut

As the U.S. federal government scrambles to try and create a consistent national policy for driverless vehicles, a new report says they think they should still match much of the features of traditional cars.

Much to the frustration of companies like Google that are working hard to try and bring driverless cars into the mainstream, the federal government is insisting that driverless cars on American roads have traditional features like driver’s seats, steering wheels and brake pedals.

It’s no surprise that Google isn’t happy about this, since their famous self-driving test cars only have one out of those three things; their cars have no steering wheels or brakes.

This isn’t the first time proposed government regulations have clashed with the objectives of tech companies or vehicle manufacturers out there, actively working to develop self-driving cars. In the final days of 2015 (which was one year later than initially planned), the California Department of Motor Vehicles proposed state law that would require a licensed driver capable of taking over the car in an emergency be present, in addition to a steering wheel.

In that case, though, the federal government stepped in. The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) declared that Google’s artificial intelligence system satisfied the DMV’s requirement for a licensed driver.

In light of that save, news outlets are reporting that Google representatives are once again surprised and unhappy about the DOT’s latest proposal.

Some industry analysts are declaring the new proposed regulations a good thing, though; a “green light of sorts.”

As Bloomberg analysts said this week, “Existing U.S. laws pose few barriers to adoption of autonomous vehicle technology so long as cars and trucks stick with existing designs allowing humans to take control. It’s only when manufacturers push the envelope by developing vehicles without such things as traditional steering wheels and brake pedals that regulations may block new autonomous technology.”

The DOT has been scrambling to create a national policy for driverless cars since January, with the publicized goal of having them ready by late June to early July. As Scientific American reports, there are currently 23 states (plus the District of Columbia) that have proposed as many as 55 different laws regarding driverless cars.

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Google Exec: We’re Seriously Considering Testing Self-Driving Cars in UK

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Jennifer van der Kleut

It looks like Britain may be getting its way.

After a big push from British government to get Google to come across the ocean and test their self-driving cars there-after it came out that Google was mulling over new cities to expand testing- it appears Google may actually be eyeing the United Kingdom.

News reports this week quote Google Alphabet’s chairman Eric Schmidt as saying that the tech company is seriously evaluating the viability of testing in Britain.

The Telegraph reported back in December that Google had actually had five meetings with the UK’s Department of Transport over the past two years about autonomous cars. The Telegraph said Sarah Hunter, head of policy for the company’s “experimental division” known as Google X, said the company appreciated “the non-regulatory approach being taken in the UK, [which] places the UK in a good position and could be seen as an example of best practice.”

According to The Telegraph, driverless cars can be legally trialled on public roads anywhere in the UK, as long as they are covered by insurance. Currently, public trials are being conducted in five UK areas: Milton Keynes, Greenwich, Bristol and Coventry.

In addition, a driverless and connected-car “living lab” launched in Greenwich recently. The UK Smart Mobility Lab will reportedly function as an “open innovation environment” where companies and researchers can design and develop self-driving and connected-car technology, test it in a realistic environment, and then work to integrate the finished product into the public.

International Business Times UK quotes Isabel Dedring, deputy mayor of transport, as saying, “It is still very early days, but we would be keen for trials to happen in London whenever Google are ready to move them into other countries.”

Google is currently testing its self-driving cars in and around Mountain View, California, where the company’s headquarters are located, as well as in Austin, Texas and Kirkland, Washington. In February, permit applications revealed Google was looking to expand testing to four new cities, one of which turned out to be Kirkland. The other three cities have not yet been revealed.

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Careful Steps on Driverless Laws for Tennessee, Virginia

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Burney Simpson

State legislatures in Tennessee and Virginia are working methodically in their review of driverless technology laws.

For now, the focus is on ensuring that the language of any new law fits current definitions and statutes covering vehicle technology and driver requirements.

“There’s excitement and cautiousness. (People) get concerned when you talk about a fully autonomous vehicle,” said Del. Glenn Davis, a Republican in the Virginia General Assembly.

Right now states are hesitant to pass any rules on driverless technology, said Anne Teigen, a program principal, and policy specialist transportation, with the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL).

“The challenge for the states is that they want to react but they don’t want to stifle innovation. They are trying to find a balance,” said Teigen.

Teigen in January updated the NCSL’s page devoted to autonomous legislation, noting there were then 32 proposals in state legislatures related to the vehicles. The website doesn’t cover connected vehicle activity.

In Tennessee, state Sen. Mark Green introduced SB 1561 that would allow road testing of the driverless vehicles. Green argues this will encourage auto manufacturers to start building the cars in the state.

GM, Nissan, and Volkswagen, and Tier 1 supplier Denso already operate manufacturing plants in Tennessee.

Green declined to share names but says he has had discussions with auto OEMs and suppliers on driverless testing in the Volunteer State.

The bill is far from a sure thing. Green must rewrite some of the language so a driverless vehicle operator meets the state’s definition of a vehicle driver. He plans to officially propose it to the Senate Transportation Committee in a few weeks.

This summer, the state’s DOT, its motor vehicle department, and others may designate a road corridor for testing vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I) and vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, says Green.

OLD DOMINION STAYS NEW

In Virginia, the House and Senate have approved a proposal from Del. Davis that legalizes monitors showing live images in a vehicle when the vehicle is being operated autonomously.

The bill’s language is convoluted but it was necessary to override an existing law that fought distracted driving, said Davis.  

“We needed to address this. This is a first step. We need to make sure the laws are safe both for standard mode (vehicles) and autonomous vehicles,” said Davis.

The proposal now goes to Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe for his signature. McAuliffe last year launched Virginia Automated Corridors, a state initiative on the research and development of automated vehicles.  

Davis also proposed a bill that would define autonomous vehicles but it got bottled up in committee and will probably expire when the state’s legislative session ends in March.

He might reintroduce the proposal next year, expanding it to include a definition of automated-vehicle technology, like lane assist and cruise control, along with that of autonomous vehicles.

That combination of familiar technology with cutting-edge driverless could sway more legislators to vote for the bill, says Davis.

“New vehicles are bringing this combination of automated technology and driver control,” said Davis. “Once people are comfortable with (lane assist), you will see more acceptance of (autonomous).”

While the states move slowly, the U.S. Department of Transportation is setting the pace on federal policy.

Its National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) division will release this summer a policy foundation for autonomous vehicles. This will include a definition of the vehicles, testing policies, and guidance on their deployment and operation.

NHTSA will also release a model driverless car policy for the states.

The feds just may overtake the states on this one.

Graphic by brisray.com.

Todd Stone-BritishColumbia-Canada-Transport Minister

One Canadian City is Saying ‘No’ to Self-Driving Car Testing

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Jennifer van der Kleut

Every day, more and more cities across the globe are saying Yes to testing and preparing for autonomous transportation. However, it appears Vancouver, Canada will not be one of them-at least, not any time soon.

News outlets are reporting that Transportation Minister Todd Stone says British Columbia has no plans to test self-driving vehicles on public roads in the province any time soon.

Furthermore, he is warning cities across the province that they do not have free reign to begin testing without the federal government’s approval.

“I don’t believe the City of Vancouver has regulatory authority over the operation of motor vehicles, that’s a provincial authority, and safety standards is a federal role,” Stone said, according to CBC News.

MetroNews Canada says Stone is not against driverless cars; he says, rather, he is “keenly interested” in the technology and its potential transportation benefits, but that there’s much more discussion that needs to take place within the government before that can or should happen.

Stone also acknowledged that other provinces across Canada-such as Ontario-are already moving forward with testing, and said that perhaps British Columbia should see how that turns out first.

“Our preference at the moment in British Columbia is to stand pat and just keep a close eye on these other jurisdictions,” he said, according to MetroNews Canada.  “There probably will come a day where driverless vehicles will be on roads across North America. For us, safety will be the most important consideration.”

MetroNews reports that, last week, Transport Minister Marc Garneau asked the Senate to “launch a study of the regulatory, policy and technical issues” associated with driverless vehicles so that Canada does not miss out on the potential benefits.

Vancouver City Councillor Geoff Meggs appeared to be disappointed in Stone’s statement, and said he wishes the city and province would be more proactive in exploring the valuable technology.

“It would be great to see the province step forward in a more comprehensive way because I think all the municipalities will be asking questions about it,” he said, according to CBC News.