Eye on safety, California sets rules for self-driving cars

California rules-of-the-road for self-driving cars would have the potential to set precedent, and the proposed regulations were seen as sure to slow down the speed with which the technology would go mainstream.

California regulators have unveiled a roadmap that would let consumers begin using self-driving cars, though manufacturers would have to prove the emerging technology is safe before a licensed driver could get chauffeured around town.

“The primary focus of the deployment regulations is the safety of autonomous vehicles and the safety of the public who will share the road with these vehicles”, said DMV Director Jean Shiomoto.

The DMV will hold hearings on the proposed rules in January and February, and will consider making changes before they’re made final, Gonzalez said. The first is to establish “certain vehicle equipment requirements, equipment performance standards, safety certifications, and any other matters the department concludes is necessary to ensure the safe operation of autonomous vehicles on public roads, with or without the presence of a driver inside the vehicle”.

Today’s proposal stems from a law, passed in 2012 by California legislators, ordering the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles to issue rules for the testing and use of autonomous vehicles.

Austin is the only place where Google is testing the vehicles outside California.

Though no manufacturer has said it thinks the cars are ready just yet, at least a dozen are developing the technology, and the most aggressive suggest a model could be ready within a few years.

Manufacturers are also required to disclose the data they collect, other than from safety systems, and obtain approval to collect it. Concerns that self-driving cars could be a way for major data collectors like Google to collect information on consumers have fuelled privacy concerns. Texas has no obvious restrictions on self-driving vehicles, and Google has lobbied to keep it that way. As a result, the regulations are almost a year overdue.

One silver lining for Google may be that the proposed regulations forbid carmakers from selling self-driving cars outright. Google, dismayed by the DMV, notes that 94 percent of collisions are caused by driver error.

Other companies heavily invested in autonomous cars include Google, Tesla, Volkswagen (Audi), BMW, General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Honda and a number of suppliers including Continental, Delphi and Bosch. Some features detect other cars in nearby lanes, while others take over braking if the auto detects pedestrians or another object up ahead. Tesla’s new Autopilot feature allows the electric vehicle to change lanes on its own after the driver flicks the stalk.

Google spokesman Johnny Luu said the company was “gravely disappointed” by the draft regulations.

Drawing quick reactions were regulations that the initially deployed autonomous vehicles must be equipped with steering wheels, pedals and have a licensed driver behind the wheel.

The technology company has a fleet of vehicles running around the state and earlier this year started testing in Texas, a state that has no regulations.

Brian Soublet, the DMV attorney who helped draft the rules, said the agency would tackle regulations for cars with no driver inside in the future.