A varied industry alliance recently sent a letter to U.S. senators urging them to oppose the American Vision for Safer Transportation through Advancement of Revolutionary Technologies (AV START) Act, which encourages the development of highly automated vehicle safety technologies
The act has significant safety flaws and omissions, the letter stated, and is rushing forward with unproven technologies ahead of public safety.
“The AV START Act does not even sufficiently address known problems revealed by the dangerous and deadly crashes involving vehicles equipped with highly and partially automated driving systems that have occurred since the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held its markup last year,” the letter said.
Seven recommendations were made in the letter, which include directing the U.S. Department of Transportation to issue minimum standards for driverless cars, addressing the safety shortcomings of partially automated vehicles, and ensuring the National Transportation Safety Board has resources to oversee driverless cars effectively.
If the recommendations are not included in the act, the nation’s roads will become more dangerous, the alliance said.
The alliance includes families affected by motor vehicle crashes, law enforcement and first responders, engineers, disability communities, environmental and consumer groups, bicyclists and pedestrians, public health, and local, state and national organizations representing safety.