ChinaAutoInfo

The US' top automotive regulatory body, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), has unveiled a proposal to establish accident reporting and transparency rules for vehicles equipped with autonomous driving features. This proposal comes at a critical time as numerous companies are racing to deploy commercial autonomous taxi services.

Last Friday, NHTSA released a press statement detailing the proposed rule, named the "ADS-equipped Vehicle Safety, Transparency, and Evaluation Program" (AV STEP), marking the first of its kind in the United States. The rule is also designed to expedite the process for companies to obtain exemption permits, allowing for faster and larger-scale deployment of vehicles with autonomous driving systems.

The AV STEP initiative will be open to all companies operating or planning to operate autonomous vehicles that meet the standards on public roads, with its main goal being to increase transparency around autonomous vehicles.

NHTSA has officially published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the establishment of such a framework. Once adopted, these regulations will increase the amount of public information on autonomous vehicles in the United States, focusing on providing automakers, operators, and municipalities with more data on public perception of the technology and accident data related to vehicles equipped with autonomous driving systems.

The AV STEP plan will also create two new exemption processes for the deployment of autonomous driving systems, offering greater regulatory flexibility for businesses looking to launch commercial services. NHTSA also stated that a public comment period will be provided after the rule is published, with more information available in the docket numbered NHTSA-2024-0100.

Notably, as NHTSA introduces this proposal aimed at enhancing transparency, the incoming US President Donald Trump is reportedly planning to rescind existing rules related to autonomous driving accident reporting. This move is widely seen as streamlining the development process for autonomous vehicles for companies like Tesla.

Last month, a Bloomberg report indicated that Trump's transition team is developing a federal-level framework for autonomous vehicles and has prioritized autonomous driving technology as one of the top tasks for his upcoming term. Under current NHTSA regulations, autonomous vehicles without steering wheels or accelerator pedals are not allowed for large-scale deployment, which clearly needs to be modified to accommodate Tesla's Cybercab and other similar vehicle platforms.