Senators Push for Federal Backing of Autonomous Vehicles

A group of senators sent a letter to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg recently pressing for more federal support of autonomous vehicles.

The April 27 letter — which was signed by 12 Democrats in the Senate — framed the issue as a matter of public safety, noting that autonomous vehicles eliminate “one of the biggest safety risks on the road: impaired driving.”

“The data shows that deaths on the nation’s roadways were up 12 percent in the first nine months of 2021 compared to the same period in 2020,” the letter states. “This is a trend in the wrong direction. With an appropriate regulatory framework, autonomous vehicles have the potential to help reduce deaths and injuries from crashes.”

They contended that this potential is being squandered because we lack a federal “regulatory framework that will foster … innovation while simultaneously protecting and encouraging all of the important benefits we believe autonomous vehicles are capable of delivering.”

Along with these concerns, the group also asked Buttigieg a series of questions about its oversight of autonomous vehicles, including:

• What specific actions is the department considering regarding autonomous vehicles?
• What efforts has the department made to modernize the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards to accommodate autonomous vehicles?
• Whether the department will work with state and local governments to implement policies aiding autonomous vehicles?