Texas reminds Google self-driving cars welcome

Google is not happy with the preliminary rules California issued Wednesday to regulate the production and sales of self-driving vehicles.

“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, ” says DMV Director Jean Shiomoto.

The rules would require a licensed driver to be present-and capable of taking control-in the vehicle while driving, as well as prohibit the use of driverless cars without a steering wheel or user-controllable brakes.

Google spokesman Johnny Luu said the company was still reviewing the draft rules, but that the company was “gravely disappointed” by what it saw.

There are no comprehensive federal rules addressing the technology, and as the largest auto market in the United States, rules in California are a landmark in the development of self-driving technology. However, by the looks of it the Alphabet concept vehicle could have trouble with the California DMV standards.

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.

Toyota has taken the stance that drivers must be always available to take control if needed. Or it could, at least, force testing outside of California.

“Our concern is safety”, Brian Soublet, the California Department of Motor Vehicles’ chief legal counsel, said in response to a question about whether the regulations might hurt Alphabet’s efforts.

“We just aren’t ready to take that driver out yet”, said Jessica Gonzalez, a DMV spokeswoman.

California’s Department of Motor Vehicles unveiled draft rules Wednesday created to build in caution for technology that is being developed and deployed faster than many imagined. Regulations for completely driverless vehicles will follow some time after that.

Tesla and Ford also hold permits to test driverless cars in California and this regulation would theoretically affect any plans they may have to sell these types of cars to the public as well.

The newest rules would effectively block the commercial deployment of “driverless” cars, which could function as robotic taxis that pick up passengers and drop them off at the destination of their choosing.

THE LEASE YOU CAN DO: Once a model has passed the safety checks, consumers could lease but not buy it. For the first three years of its deployment, manufacturers would need to collect safety and performance information and report that data monthly to the agency. But Tesla has said regulations-or a lack of them-could hinder widespread use of the technology. While patient deliberation is sometimes the best course of action to ensure one gets the details right, unfortunately, the draft regs fall disappointingly short of that goal. The company – which began autonomous vehicle testing six years ago and has pushed for clarity on regulations – isn’t happy with this development.

The DMV can change the rules over the coming months before they are finalized, and the industry is likely to contest them as overly burdensome.