Thursday, December 17, 2015

Google's Self- Driving Car Meets Asinine Government Bureaucracy

Mark Bergen writes:
The first ever regulations for self-driving cars rolled out of California on Wednesday — and Google is very displeased.

After putting out ground rules for the testing of autonomous vehicles last year, California’s Department of Motor Vehicles issued draft rules for the actual deployment of the cars this morning. Some rules, like requiring manufacturers to receive certification and pass certain cyber security thresholds, were expected.

But the surprise — and the big snag for Google — is that the rules expressly declare that a licensed driver must be present in the front seat at all times.

In a statement, Google’s self-driving car unit slammed the proposed rules:

In developing vehicles that can take anyone from A to B at the push of a button, we’re hoping to transform mobility for millions of people, whether by reducing the 94 percent of accidents caused by human error or bringing everyday destinations within reach of those who might otherwise be excluded by their inability to drive a car. Safety is our highest priority and primary motivator as we do this. We’re gravely disappointed that California is already writing a ceiling on the potential for fully self-driving cars to help all of us who live here.

9 comments:

  1. The licensed driver rule will pretty much kill the car. Who wants to sit in the front seat and let what is likely to be an overly-cautious computer drive the car? It's easy to tolerate the computer driving if you're free to do something else, but it would be torturous to be required to sit and monitor the computer's progress.

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  2. Tech lefties are learning that supporting socialists is a bad idea. Slow learners, them.

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  3. Might as well return to the original rule for automobiles that a man with a flag must walk before the vehicle to warn others of its approach.

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  4. How did Google not expect this? The licensed driver is required so that the revenue agents will still have someone to give the ticket to. Local governments aren't going to give up on their tax cattle.

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    1. Exactly, there's a lot of gov't revenue made off of licensing.

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    2. I don't think this argument actually follows. The state could still ticket whoever licensed the vehicle. They could also charge a higher rate for licensing of autonomous vehicles, due to safety concerns or whatever other nonsense they come up with.

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    3. You make good points, however the state is moving slowly and thankfully doesn't have you working for it.

      :)

      Their gears will have to turn for a while before coming up with all their non-sense licensing for autonomous vehicles and so requiring a licensed person in the car in the meantime preserves their confiscation activities.

      :)

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  5. Having a fully able licensed driver “mend” the driverless car would entirely contradict against the absolute purpose of the car – being driverless. With that said, the entire industry could simply wind up within a few days after the implementation of the regulation because it serves no actual purpose anymore.

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