is transportation editor with 10+ years of experience who covers EVs, public transportation, and aviation. His work has appeared in The New York Daily News and City & State.
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During a two-hour hearing in the US Senate Wednesday, top executives from Waymo and Tesla urged lawmakers to take action on long-stalled legislation to speed the deployment of self-driving cars on public roads. But after two hours of Q&A around a number of hot-button topics, including robotaxi safety, legal liability, remote operation, and China, it was clear that lawmakers were no closer to passing any bill related to autonomous vehicles.
Waymo faced questions about its decision to use a Chinese-made vehicle for its next-generation robotaxi, as well as several incidents in which its vehicles failed to stop behind a school bus during student pickups. Tesla was asked about its decision to remove radar from its vehicles, its position on binding arbitration, and its misleading marketing around its autonomous features. And officials from both companies were asked whether they believed that the US was at risk of being overtaken by China without a national framework regulating autonomous vehicles. Naturally, they agreed.
“For America to lead in AV technology, we must modernize regulations that inhibit the industry’s ability to innovate,” Lars Moravy, vice president of vehicle engineering at Tesla, said during his opening statement. “Federal regulations for vehicles have not kept up with the pace of the rapid evolution of technology. Many standards were implemented decades ago and do not adequately address modern advancements, such as electric drive trains, automated driving systems, and over-the-air software updates. We need American leadership for AV rules and regulations.”
But whether Congress can finally pass legislation to regulate autonomous vehicles remains uncertain. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), who chairs the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee and oversaw today’s hearing, said he thinks it can be done as part of the Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act, which covers federal funding for highways, transit, and safety programs.
Given the nature of the questions during the hearing, lawmakers remain divided over the potential benefits of driverless cars — and the companies operating them.
Safety
“Safety” was the watchword of the hearing. Representatives from Waymo and Tesla both said it was their guiding principle. And several senators agreed that the roads would be safer with more autonomous vehicles on the road.
But both companies were grilled over specific safety lapses involving their vehicles. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) said that any federal legislation would need to address Tesla’s deceptive marketing practices.
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