New US regulations announced for self-driving cars

World Today

As self-driving cars and trucks begin hitting the road, the U.S. government is rolling out safety guidelines for the emerging automated market.

CCTV America’s Jim Spellman reports.

A 15-point safety assessment for self-driving cars addresses issues including vehicle design, crash avoidance and even protecting the vehicles from hackers. 

Regulators and the industry see self-driving cars as potentially much more safe than conventional vehicles.

About 35,000 people were killed in traffic accidents in the U.S. in 2015, and according to government data, nearly a third of those involved drunk drivers. Anti-drunk driving advocates have argued that self-driving cars could prevent many of those deaths.

However, recent crashes in China and the U.S. of Teslas operating in “Auto-Pilot” mode have raised concerns that manufacturers may be too eager to get their self-driving cars to market. The new policy framework aims to ensure autonomous vehicles are safe before they hit the road.