The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced Thursday it had issued its first-of-its-kind final rule on occupant protection in vehicles with automated driving systems (ADS).
The Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards would update protections for occupants in vehicles without traditional manual controls associated with a human driver.
“Through the 2020s, an important part of USDOT’s safety mission will be to ensure safety standards keep pace with the development of automated driving and driver assistance systems,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “This new rule is an important step, establishing robust safety standards for ADS-equipped vehicles.”
Prior to Thursday’s rule announcement, occupant protection standards were written for traditional vehicle features, including steering wheels and other manual controls. The new rule updates the standards to clarify manufacturer requirements when applying standards in ADS-equipped vehicles without those features.
“As the driver changes from a person to a machine in ADS-equipped vehicles, the need to keep the humans safe remains the same and must be integrated from the beginning,” said Dr. Steven Cliff, NHTSA’s Deputy Administrator. “With this rule, we ensure that manufacturers put safety first.”
The rule clarifies that ADS technology must continue to provide high levels of occupant protection, as current passenger vehicles do.
The rule is part of NHTSA’s efforts to ensure public safety as vehicle automation evolves. The agency said it is actively engaged in monitoring and overseeing safe testing and deployment of ADS-equipped vehicles.
In conjunction with the final rule, the NHTSA will update its webpage to reflect the changes and help the public understand automated driving systems, the agency said.