Motor Mouth: Autonomous car testing regulations? There are close to none | Driving.ca

Headlines are quick hits from media outlets from Missouri and around the world. Follow the headline link for the full story. The source of this headline says:

As it turns out, Rafaela Vasquez, the “backup” driver of Uber’s self-driving Volvo XC90, was streaming Hulu just before striking and killing Elaine Herzberg as she was walking across Mill Avenue in Tempe, Arizona. . . .

The bigger question is who is regulating these self-driving cars as being safe for our public roads. Each and every one of us had to be tested before our respective governments will issue a licence to drive out and about with our fellow populace, so what government agency is, likewise, testing self-driving cars to certify they are indeed as sophisticated and safe as the manufacturers claim?

Not one.

Link: 

Motor Mouth: Autonomous car testing regulations? There are close to none | Driving.ca

MoBikeFed comment: We have been working with bicycle and pedestrian groups as well as traffic safety advocates from across the country to encourage Congress to include a "driving test" in the proposed driverless vehicle regulations that are currently under discussion in the Senate.

Both Missouri senators play a key role in the "AV START Act" and you can contact them about this issue in just a few minutes:

http://p2a.co/Oy2UjKv

Based on our conversations with Senate staff, your voices ARE being heard in Washington, DC. But we need to keep up the pressure on our elected officials on this issue.