Federal Government Releases Tepid Automated Vehicles 4.0
In January of this year, the United States Department of Transportation and the National Science & Technology Council released Automated Vehicles 4.0: Ensuring American Leadership in Automated Vehicles Technologies (“AV 4.0”). The report is intended to act as a set of unifying principles across 38 federal departments, agencies, commissions, and Executive offices. It offers guidance and an overarching vision to state and local government agencies, as well as technical experts and industry participants. AV 4.0 builds on AV 3.0, which was released in 2018, and AV 2.0, which was released in 2017.
Consistent across the three iterations of Automated Vehicle reports produced under the Trump administration has been the wholly restrained voluntary/guidance approach, without mandates or true regulation laid down. This “light touch” approach recognizes that much of the regulatory action is taking place at the state level, and voluntarily by industry and other AV stakeholders. The lack of federal enforceability removes the hope of any near-term consensus or consistency to the coordination of states and industry approach to automated vehicles.
As in AV 3.0, AV 4.0 begins with a discussion of guidelines and broad overarching principles that the federal government will recognize when developing AV technology. The three Principles and associated sub-areas are:
- Protect Users and Communities
- (a) Prioritize Safety
- (b) Emphasize Security and Cyber Security
- (c) Ensure Privacy and Data Security
- (d) Enhance Mobility and Accessibility
- Promote Efficient Markets
- (a) Remain Technology Neutral
- (b) Protect American Innovation and Creativity
- (c) Modernize Regulations
- Facilitate Coordinated Efforts
- (a) Promote Consistent Standards and Practices
- (b) Ensure a Consistent Federal Approach
- (c) Improve Transportation System-Level Effects
While these broader principles are new to AV 3.0, the sub-areas within each principle are a mixture of old principles from AV 3.0, combined with some new government focuses. (The new components are italicized in the above list) These new components center mainly around the Trump administration’s desire to “Buy American, Hire American,” and bring in new focuses for security, cybersecurity, and privacy. The report does indicate that DOT will establish manufacturing, performance, and operational standards to increase safety in AV testing and integration. Still, the parameters of these standards remain unclear.
However, the majority of the report is devoted to Section III: U.S. Government Activities and Opportunities for Collaboration. The driving purpose of the report is to provide general descriptions of the vast array of government agencies that are responsible (or will be responsible) for some level of AV-related policies or subjects. The report detail both the big and small ways that federal agencies, departments, offices, etc. will play a role in the development and commercialization of AVs. However, there is no real substantive or specific policy discussion.
The survey of government agency activity (and an appendix with links to government websites and contacts for agencies responsible for AV-related policies) are the real substance added. There is no description or plan of how interagency cooperation will occur, nor is there an overarching plan for the government’s approach to implementation. AV 4.0 is useful as a catalog for the various ways the federal government could interact with AV-policy but gives no further direction to how industry and states should regulate AVs. The DOT continues to kick the can down the road but has thankfully provided a clearinghouse of information on which agencies may be responsible for what activities, and the current efforts underway at the federal level, particularly on research and funding.
This restrained approach could be a good thing, given the rapid pace at which the AV industry is developing. However, there is a great deal more work that needs to be done at the federal level before any of the 10 core principles articulated can be realized. The Department of Transportation has requested public comment on AV 4.0.