California – With the automakers like Tesla, Audi, Cadillac and others all set to roll out their autonomous vehicles soon, the authorities are debating whether it is legal or not. The law-makers are also confused on whether the driverless technology can be termed as reckless driving or be allowed to go unnoticed.
Tesla is all set to introduce the technology in its Model S sedan; Audi is making such a vehicle for a January 2016 launch, and even Cadillac’s Super Cruise will offer the same. Carmakers like Mercedes-Benz already offer some features where the driver can leave the steering and vehicle can be monitored through the autopilot in some cases.
Most of the states do not have any specific laws against the same and some of them require the driver to have at least one hand on the steering while driving through the traffic. The auto-pilot features in the new age cars will let the driver relax after giving directions to the car, and the vehicle will automatically navigate itself through the traffic.
“We don’t need any change in legislation to put Super Cruise on the road,” said Dan Flores, a spokesman for General Motors. Volkswagen debated that when it was not denied, it cannot be illegal, and Tesla did not comment on the issue.
California, Nevada, Michigan, Florida and the District of Columbia have made autonomous car technology legal in some cases, and others are considering the same too.
“All of the states are concerned because no one wants to see a patchwork of regulations across the country. The right way to go would be to have federal standards that the automakers could follow,” said Bernard Soriano from the California Department of Motor Vehicles.
The automakers feel that the hands-free technique is going to be a breakthrough that will help control the vehicles more efficiently and evade stress for drivers.
Even the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration feels that nothing can be done to challenge the carmakers unless something wrong happens because of this auto-pilot technology.
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