Coming back from vacation, I was hoping for no news, or redundant news, to ease me back. But no, here we are with a USDOT report and a Senate hearing, both notable as much for what they do not explicitly say as for what they do. Then there is GM's ramping up efforts on driverless vehicles, at the same time that Britain is going all in. And I feel compelled to mention that Chinese technology giant Baidu plans to begin testing driverless cars in the US and to launch its vehicles in 2018.
The race is on, boys
One thing is clear: Whatever advantage the US has had is sure to disappear if steering wheels and brake pads and human drivers are required. So why is the US Department of Transportation - USDOT - going all conservative (with a small "c") by finding that steering wheels and brake pads, as well as a conventional driver's seat area are all mandatory? Basically, DOT is taking the high road that its lawyers are giving approval for. Those lawyers are pointing to transportation law provisions that refer to - and therefore assume the presence of - a driver.
Actually, Congress and the DOT building are a nice, long walk from each other - not on the same road
In my opinion, and this is, thus far, only based on the DOT report's executive summary, is that DOT is kicking this can down the road to the doorstep of Congress. Now if Congress is willing to act and agree on something, I will be surprised. But that was what the whole Senate hearing was about: Google, GM, Lyft, and Delphi (plus one restrained academic from Duke) all begging Congress to see reason and allow for AV (automated vehicles) to happen and soon and the way the companies envision the technology.
Scroll down the page with the Senate hearing information to view a video of the whole event. Notice the empty chairs of the absent Senators. They are not ready to do anything yet, and certainly not this close to heavy campaign season.
Embedded US civics lesson
For those of you who never took civics: Every member of the House is up for re-election this year, as well as one third, about 33, of the Senate.The House members represent districts (practically neighborhoods in Brooklyn, but sometimes half of or whole states in those places where hardly anyone lives). They are up for reelection every two years. Senators serve six-year terms and represent entire states.
Civics lesson over
Two big concerns at the hearing were privacy of personal information and protection from hacking. Will we still be able to live in a world where one can cheat on a spouse's dietary regime with a secret visit to McDonalds?
I'll be enjoying the full report this weekend, maybe with a nap on the porch? Who knows.
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration will be hosting two public hearings this spring. The first to be held on Apr. 8 at USDOT headquarters - right near the ballpark - in Washington, DC, and the second, still a mystery on exact date and location, though somewhere in the state of California.
In brief - goings on outside of DC
As I have other work and life interests, I'll be extremely brief here. I'm also leaving out legislative activities in California because that is a whole other post.
Britain: Driverless trucks (or lorries, as trucks are called across the pond) are set for a connected vehicle trial on a quiet stretch of highway. Only the lead truck will have a driver. I'm guessing that the driver will not be singing the convoy song.
GM: The company is buying Cruise Automation, a San Francisco startup, for more than - wait for it - one billion with a B dollars.
Advice: For most people, people who do not like the intense summer heat, that is, this is the nicest time of year to be in DC. The weather is lovely, the flowers are blooming, and the cherry blossoms are soon to make an appearance. One reason to avoid being here are the legions of eighth graders on their spring break trips to the nation's capital. Like so many flocks of geese, one sidesteps them during their seasonal migration.
No comments:
Post a Comment