ATA urges DOT to proceed with national framework for automated vehicles

The American Trucking Associations, along with a dozen other stakeholder groups, urged Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to move forward on implementing a national framework for the development and deployment of automated vehicles.

“Implementing a federal AV framework that fosters the safe deployment of AVs can help the Biden Administration to shepherd in a safer, more environmentally friendly and accessible transportation future,” the organizations wrote in a September 20 letter.

ATA was joined by the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Consumer Technology Association, the Partnership for Transportation Innovation & Opportunity, the Self-Driving Coalition for Safer Streets, the American Chemistry Council, the American Highway Users Alliance, the Automotive Service Association, ITS America, the Motor and Equipment Manufacturers Association, the National Association of Manufacturers, the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, Securing America’s Future Energy and the Telecommunications Industry Association.

“Currently, there is much uncertainty as to how the Department intends to regulate AV technology in the near term as updates to existing motor vehicle safety standards are developed and finalized,” the letter said. “As the AV industry moves from research and development to deployment, we urge the Department to use its authority to foster a pathway for near-term AV deployment. Providing for the widest range of deployment options in the near term will also help the Department gather key data on the performance of AVs to inform permanent safety standards that are both practicable and effective.”

“ATA believes there is great promise in automated vehicle technology to improve highway safety, the efficiency of our supply chain and our environment,” said ATA President and CEO Chris Spear. “But we need a national framework that fosters innovation, not a patchwork of potentially conflicting state and federal regulations to deliver on that promise.”