“US is going to broaden the guidelines for self-driving cars”

The administration of US President Donald Trump was soon to unveil new guidelines for self-driving cars. The rules are less strict. This is a wish of car manufacturers, which gives them more opportunities to test the cars on the road.

Members of the House of Representatives will vote Wednesday on the new rules, which should speed up the development of self-driving cars and make it impossible or more difficult for states to ban autonomously driving cars from public roads. Under the new rules, car manufacturers will soon receive an exception for a maximum of 25,000 self-driving vehicles; these cars do not have to comply with the existing safety rules for cars. In three years, this number could rise to 100,000.

The US Secretary of Transportation is reportedly set to announce the revised guidelines next week at a self-driving car testing facility in the US state of Michigan. This reports Reuters citing sources. A spokesman for the minister has not yet responded to a request for comment.

In September 2016, the then Obama administration issued guidelines for self-driving cars, including a voluntary publication of details of the vehicle’s safety systems. Also, car manufacturers had to submit their systems for assessment before they could be released on the market. Manufacturers such as General Motors and Google’s sister company Waymo want to get rid of these rules, while some consumer organizations want a stricter regime.

Samsung recently received permission from the California Department of Motor Vehicles to test self-driving cars. Apple and Google’s sister company Waymo also have such permission. With that permission, Samsung can send self-developed self-driving cars on public roads and the testing is not limited to its own terrain. The company is already allowed to carry out tests with a Hyundai car in its home country of South Korea.