Virginia is closer to regulating self-driving vehicles, which have steadily increased nationwide despite continued concerns over safety.
Despite crashes that have led to restrictions in some areas, other states, such as Arizona and Texas, have continued to permit testing and deployment. With interest in the technology growing in Virginia, lawmakers are trying to get ahead of some of the issues that have arisen.
Last year, Virginia leaders signed off on a plan to bring transportation officials, law enforcement, state lawmakers, and various experts together in a work group to
consider rules around the use of autonomous vehicles, such as safety, liability, privacy and cybersecurity, and operational rules.
Much of the time at the group’s July 24 meeting focused on maintaining a consistent,
statewide approach to permitting and operations, warning against a fragmented regulatory environment, often referred to as “balkanization,” where individual localities might create conflicting rules for AV companies.
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“I think we pride ourselves in having a very uniform Department of Transportation across the entire commonwealth and so, therefore, with the exception of maybe Dulles and DCA, I don’t think that we want to go down the path
of allowing localities to determine where, when, or how autonomous vehicles are going to be used,” Del. David Reid, D-Loudoun, said at the meeting.
He added, “We need to kind of adhere to what we have proven already works and not try to have 133 different thoughts and jurisdictions about how we are going to implement autonomous vehicles.”
Virginia’s participation in the AV market is of interest to the public because some advocates have said the technology can make transportation more affordable and provide more access. Experts are still studying the safety, traffic, and labor implications of AVs.
Safety
Work group staff and consultants recommended a multi-stage regulatory framework and permitting process to evaluate the safety of autonomous vehicles before and during their operation on Virginia’s public roads.
Staff recommended that legislation should focus on two levels of automation: conditional and high automation. Conditional automation is when a human driver is required to take over driving if the system can no longer operate, and high automation is when a human driver is not needed since the system is fully responsible for driving.
The work group also recommended limiting permits to commercial AVs, giving time for further testing and deployment of commercial vehicles before personal vehicles are authorized for permitting.