The Trump administration’s Department of Transportation (DOT) has is suggested new changes to federal vehicle regulations that will allow companies to omit the inclusion of brake pedals in “vehicles designed to be driven solely with automated driving systems”.
The proposal, if approved, would remove a major regulatory hurdle for companies like Tesla and Zoox, which are developing vehicles intended to be fully autonomous, without steering wheels or pedals. The public will now have 30 days comment on the proposal before DOT decides whether to approve the changes.
This is the latest in a series of proposed vehicle law changes from the Trump DOT. Late last year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed removing certain Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) requirements for windshield wiper and defogger systems and tire placards.
President Biden was also working in this direction while in office. During his administration, NHTSA proposed and eventually finalized a rule that allowed autonomous vehicles to operate without a steering wheel.
Currently, any company that develops an autonomous vehicle that lacks components required by the FMVSS must request an exemption from the federal government. Even if the exemption is granted, the regulations limit how many such exempt vehicles can be on the road.
Eliminating requirements for components such as brake pedals would theoretically allow companies to get autonomous vehicles on the market more quickly, according to NHTSA.
“We are on the cusp of the biggest technological revolution in vehicle technology since the Model T innovation,” said NHTSA Administrator Jonathan Morrison. “If we want America to lead, we must rethink our regulatory framework. That’s why, under Secretary Sean Duffy’s AV Framework, NHTSA is breaking down unnecessary barriers to innovative designs while strengthening the fundamental safety requirements that matter and holding AV developers accountable for safe performance.”
Tesla has spent the past few years developing a two-seat car it calls the Cybercab, which is meant to operate without a steering wheel or pedals. The company has never applied for an exemption from the FMVSS standards that require these inspections. Instead, CEO Elon Musk has repeatedly said his company will roll out the vehicles nationwide once regulatory approval is granted.
Meanwhile, Tesla has spent the last year operating a small robotaxi service in Austin, Texas. The company started the service with safety drivers in the front seats, but has steadily phased out those drivers, leaving the cars to run “unsupervised.” The company has admitted to NHTSA that it uses remote controls to monitor and, in some rare cases, remotely move vehicles at low speeds after crashes or to avoid obstacles.
Amazon-owned Zoox applied for and was granted an exemption from FMVSS standards last year so it could demonstrate its purpose-built robotaxi. Since then, the company has requested, and is waiting for, another exemption for the commercial exploitation of this robotaxi.
Companies like Waymo, which use retrofitted or modified versions of regular vehicles (like the Jaguar I-Pace), have been able to develop as many robotaxis as they want since they already have manual controls.
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