The self-driving Google car has been talked about several times on this website. Like all cars, it must be approved by the federal government before it hits one US street, highway, freeway, avenue, drive, road boulevard or parkway. Google just got a letter bringing their revolutionary car one step closer to that approval.
That letter came from the National Highway Traffic Safety Agency (NHTSA). The letter confirmed the computer driving the self-driving car can legally be the driver (sorry if that sounds confusing). Here is that letter in it’s entirety. I should warn you, reading War and Peace in Russian is easier to understand. ?The current fleet is still being tested at Google headquarters in Mountain Valley, CA. California law restricts them to maximum speed of 25 MPH. The state law also requires a human driver be present at all testings in case something goes wrong. However, there are some guidelines in the NHTSA’s letter. The letter stated that brake pedals need to be accessible to the driver. But since the computer is the driver, then the brake is accessible through electronic means. Therefore, they comply with this rule. The letter shows some conflicts about rear view mirrors. Unlike human driven cars, the Google car has no need for rear view mirrors. It has a full sensor array, so they can skip that rule.
This is where tensions may come between regular and Google cars. I am glad the US government is making sure Google has some accountability. But the fact they can already skip one rule might throw things into whack. What about other car parts humans might need but Google doesn’t? Now let’s say Google goes out on roads all over America, then the world. How do car manufacturers adjust? How will consumers adjust? This car is coming along nicely, and we can’t delay this conversation any longer. Is America ready for the Google self-driving car?