Now, however, it seems like the US government will allow the self-driving software to be the official driver of the vehicle, which in turn opens the door to rewriting regulations to allow for closed-circuit autonomous driving systems without steering wheels, pedals, and other human-operated mechanisms. For example, right now US regulations stipulate that a car’s dashboard must provide an indicator for low tyre pressure; but in the future, that warning would be fed directly into the autonomous driving software.
While this is certainly a big step towards truly driverless cars, there’s still quite a long way to go. “The next question is whether and how Google could certify that the (self-driving system) meets a standard developed and designed to apply to a vehicle with a human driver,” the NHTSA said.
In January, the US Department of Transport said that it would be willing to waive some regulations to get more self-driving cars onto the roads. Anthony Foxx, the transport chief, said “in 2016, we are going to do everything we can to promote safe, smart, and sustainable vehicles. We are bullish on automated vehicles.”
Things are moving quickly in the UK, too: London’s transport bosses say they are in “active discussions” with Google, with the hope of getting the company to trial its self-driving cars on the other side of the pond. Self-driving cars are being tested on public roads in the UK, but just like the US they are still required to have a human driver inside who can take over if necessary.