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Updating and building on guidance issued one year ago, the U.S.
Department of Transportation published a new federal guidance
document entitled Preparing for the Future of Transportation:
Automated Vehicles 3.0 ("AV 3.0").
AV 3.0, released on October 4, 2018, incorporates extensive
stakeholder feedback to provide updated voluntary guidance and
policy considerations regarding safety standards and federal
agencies' roles in the development process of automated
vehicles. DOT hopes this guidance will bring some clarity to a
murky regulatory space and in turn will shepherd developers,
manufacturers, and state and local governments in implementing
autonomous vehicle technology in a safe, consistent, and organized
way.
Industry stakeholders have long complained of outdated federal
regulations which fail to keep pace with emerging technologies.
Regulatory gaps have left companies guessing about how federal
agencies might shoehorn cutting-edge products into the existing
regulatory scheme. This uncertainty has forced companies to
undertake the impossible task of quantifying risk in emerging
autonomous-vehicle fields without concrete baselines. AV 3.0 aims
to address at least some of these policy uncertainties by
announcing the following key developments and agency-specific
plans:
DOT will interpret and work to adapt the definitions of
"driver" and "operator" to include an automated
system; until now they have referred exclusively to a human.
Numerous federal agencies, including the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration (FMCSA), and the Federal Highway
Administration (FHWA), will be streamlining procedures and updating
regulations to fill gaps and accommodate new connected and
automated-vehicle technologies. Specifically:
NHTSA will propose a streamlined
procedure to process exemption petitions.
FMCSA will initiate proposed rulemaking to identify regulatory
gaps in the areas of inspection, repair, and maintenance for
autonomous driving systems.
FHWA will update its 2009 manual on uniform traffic control
devices to take into consideration new technology.
The good news for industry and competition is that AV 3.0 is
technology-neutral and does away with DOT's prior designation
of ten "Automated Vehicle Proving Grounds" announced in
January 2017. This is a candid recognition that DOT should not
"favor particular locations or . . . pick winners and
losers." This technologically and geographically neutral
position is a welcome boon for startups and established players
alike, as the race to safely put autonomous vehicles on the road
gains momentum.
DOT now invites public comment on AV 3.0, which can be found in
full at the DOT website.
You can watch the October 4 AV 3.0 publication
event—including comments from DOT Secretary Elaine L.
Chao—via recorded
webstream.
Because of the generality of this update, the information
provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should
not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular
situations.
The Lookout provides readers with a snapshot of some important developments in maritime law and the maritime industry that are being monitored by the Admiralty, Maritime & Energy Litigation Practice at Lewis Brisbois.
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