Major self-driving car bill that would accelerate testing moves closer to law

As more companies like Apple and Samsung begin testing self-driving cars in the US, along with more cities opening its roads to the tech, a new piece of legislation is on its way to expediting the rise of driver-less vehicles even further.

The Safely Ensuring Lives Future Deployment and Research In Vehicle Evolution (or SELF DRIVE) Act has passed in the House of Representatives, a bill that hopes to open up the entire United States to more testing of autonomous driving tech.

If passed through the Senate and then turned into law, the SELF DRIVE Act would allow companies to test up to 100,000 self-driving cars on the road nationwide a year.

The act would also bypass certain safety standards, like having a steering wheel and gas pedal on-board, that are mainly in place for cars that rely on a full-time driver.

Share the road

Through these changes, supporters of the act hope that more companies can get more autonomous cars on the streets with fewer roadblocks (pun unintended) for testing.

Additionally, the bill hopes to make it easier for companies to gather data on the efficacy of their autonomous cars in real-world scenarios, such as lower accident rates and overall efficiency.

Despite relaxing some of the rules, companies testing self-driving cars through SELF DRIVE would still be required to apply for a testing permit, as well as submit regular safety reports. 

Additionally, companies would have to submit plans demonstrating a commitment to cybersecurity on their vehicles, with hacking becoming a major growing pain of the era of The Internet of Things and definitely one auto makers should not take lightly.

Via Engadget

• Cortana is also coming to BMW cars

SOURCE - TECH RADAR posted by Campus94