Regulation of Autonomous Vehicles

A major issue to be addressed as autonomous vehicles come onto the market is who will regulate them. Traditionally, vehicle safety has been within the purview of federal governments, but states have regulated traffic laws. Some believe that increased uniformity will be required when cars no longer have human drivers; a “patchwork quilt” will be unworkable, they believe. The U.S. Department of Transportation is expected to release guidance on self-driving vehicles this summer, and in doing so, the agency must balance safety and innovation. One administrator suggested that these federal guidelines may also serve as a “model state policy” for state regulation.

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