Tell the Department of Transportation: Regulate Driverless Car Safety Now
- Target:
- Department of Transportation
- Region:
- United States of America
- Website:
- www.autosafety.org
On Sunday, March 18, a pedestrian walking her bicycle across the road in Arizona was killed after a self-driving Uber crashed into her. There was a safety “driver” paid by Uber to sit in the driver’s seat who did not see the person right in front of the car until it was too late.
Did you know there are no safety standards governing self-driving cars?
Did you know, that right now, the United States Senate is considering a law that would make sure that states are not allowed to pass rules about the safety of self-driving cars? Even worse, there’s a loophole that would allow car companies to use hidden arbitration clauses that would prevent you from taking that company to court in the event of a driverless car crash.
The truth is, there are no rules ensuring that a self-driving car will be safe before it gets on the road in your town. There aren’t even penalties for an unsafe self-driving car – because there are no rules!
Self-driving cars seem like a great idea. Robots cannot drink and drive, text and drive, and should be able to be programmed not to speed. Too many people get killed every year because of those kind of human behaviors.
But, fewer people die from car crashes than they used to because we have rules. Rules that mean cars need to meet performance standards and have safety equipment and are supposed to be safe before they hit the road. Rules that don’t include loopholes that allow companies to avoid accountability in court when something goes horribly wrong.
The bill the Senate is writing does not require the U.S. Department of Transportation to write any rules. Instead, the law is mainly focused on letting car companies and technology giants get their vehicles on your streets and use you as a guinea pig to test their product
Enough is enough! People need to come before profits.
Sensible rules that demonstrate safety before robot cars are tested on public roads should be supported by the federal and state governments, and all responsible manufacturers.
We, the undersigned, want the Trump Administration to stop caving to the whims of the driverless car industry and write rules that require self-driving cars to prove they are safe before being tested in public areas
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The Tell the Department of Transportation: Regulate Driverless Car Safety Now petition to Department of Transportation was written by Center for Auto Safety and is in the category Consumer Affairs at GoPetition.