Legislation aims to jump-start rollout of driverless vehicles

WASHINGTON — New legislation introduced in the Senate attempts to spring the U.S. Department of Transportation into regulatory action that will lead to commercial rollout of driverless cars and trucks.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have initiated rulemakings to establish a regulatory framework for driverless cars and trucks but have yet to issue final rules.

“For nearly a decade, Washington has talked about autonomous vehicles without meaningful action,” remarked Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., when she introduced her bill, the Autonomous Vehicle Advancement Act of 2025, earlier this month.

“This legislation cuts through the red tape and establishes a clear path forward for getting safe autonomous vehicles on American roads where they can save lives, create jobs, and maintain our technological leadership. Wyoming is a highway state and ensuring that autonomous vehicles are integrated in the safest way possible remains my number one priority.”

The bill specifies two components for advancing autonomous vehicles: 

• Require the secretary of transportation to address autonomous vehicle certification challenges identified in a 2016 federal report by the Volpe Center, a research arm of DOT. 
• Establish a comprehensive road map for achieving commercially viable Level 4 and Level 5 vehicles – those that are equipped with self-driving systems that require minimal to no human intervention.

The purpose of the report cited in Lummis’ bill was to “identify instances where the existing Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards may pose challenges to the introduction of automated vehicles,” according to the report’s abstract.

“It identifies standards requiring further review – both to ensure that existing regulations do not unduly stifle innovation and to help ensure that automated vehicles perform their functions safely.”

The report also considered the concept of truck platooning, technology that allows autonomous trucks to follow each other in close formation to reduce drag and improve fuel economy.

“What’s encouraging is that we’re seeing a convergence of regulatory and technological readiness both at the federal and state levels to unlock safe deployment,” Earl Adams, VP of public policy and regulatory affairs at Plus, a developer of driverless trucks, told FreightWaves in an email seeking comment on the Lummis proposal.

“The bipartisan support for a safety-case-based approach is laying a solid foundation for AV adoption. The industry is ready to meet the challenge, but it’s critical that we keep pushing for a national framework to ensure consistent rules across all states.”

Related articles:

• Driverless-truck lobby urges federal action toward full autonomy
• Regulators deny roadside warning exemption for autonomous trucks
• FMCSA proposes new requirements for driverless trucks

Click for more FreightWaves articles by John Gallagher.

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