The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announced that nine companies and eight states have signed on as the first participants in a new department initiative to improve the safety and testing transparency of automated driving systems, the Automated Vehicle Transparency and Engagement for Safe Testing (AV TEST) Initiative. The participating companies are:
- Beep
- Cruise
- Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
- Local Motors
- Navya
- Nuro
- Toyota
- Uber
- Waymo
The participating states are:
- California
- Florida
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Ohio
- Pennsylvania
- Texas
- Utah
“Through this initiative, the department is creating a formal platform for federal, state and local government to coordinate and share information in a standard way,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao.
The AV TEST Initiative will include a series of public events across the country to improve transparency and safety in the development and testing of automated driving systems.
Participants can share information about their activities, which will help increase the public’s awareness of testing, centralize the department’s role in promoting safety and innovation, and build stronger relationships among federal, state and local governments and stakeholders.
Additionally, this voluntary initiative will provide an online, public-facing platform for sharing automated driving systems testing activities and other safety-related information with the public. Online mapping tools may show testing locations at the local, state and national levels, as well as testing activity data, which may include dates, frequency, vehicle counts and routes.
“Automated driving system technologies hold the promise to help prevent fatal crashes, save lives and reduce the severity of the crashes that do occur,” said James Owens, deputy administrator of NHTSA. “Under the leadership of Secretary Chao, NHTSA is committed to facilitating the safe testing, development and eventual deployment of advanced vehicle safety technologies through enhanced transparency and information sharing with all our state and local partners.”
The AV TEST Initiative will be open to all stakeholders involved in the safe development and testing of automated driving system vehicles. At the state and local level, participants may include departments of motor vehicles, departments of transportation, highway safety offices and city governments. At the automotive industry level, participants may include developers, manufacturers, suppliers, operators and testers.
This initiative aligns with the department’s leadership on automated driving system vehicles, including AV 4.0: Ensuring American Leadership in Automated Vehicle Technologies.
For more about the AV Test Initiative, visit nhtsa.gov/avtest.
