Automobile and technology heavy weights Google, Ford, Volvo, Uber and Lyft jointly created the Self-Driving Coalition for Safer Streets, a lobbying group that will work with both policy makers and the public to promote autonomous driving technology. The coalition, announced last week, will be headed by David Strickland, a former National Highway Traffic Safety Administration administrator. The coalition is being formed in the wake of NHSTA’s recent public hearings on autonomous vehicles, and in advance of a variety of regulators at the federal, state and local level beginning to create regulations of autonomous vehicles.

While the coalition is framed as focused on promoting the safety advantages of driverless cars, it will also work to convince lawmakers on how to think about and regulate (or decline to regulate) autonomous vehicles. The coalition’s formation indicates how quickly the conversation on autonomous vehicles is shifting into high gear and how some of the major players are working to ensure their voices are heard as regulations are formed. In addition to NHSTA, the Department of Transportation and several state-level agencies across the nation, including the California Department of Motor Vehicles, already have ongoing rulemaking procedures governing driverless cars, and will soon be seeking public comment to shape these regulations. Interested parties, including local and regional government agencies, should consider participating so that their concerns are considered and that local governments have an influence on the final regulations. The California DMV will open up a 45-day comment period later this year to allow agencies and individuals to present opinions on the strengths and weaknesses of its regulations, and to argue for what changes should be made.

Google, Ford and Volvo are all actively involved in the development of autonomous vehicles, and each company is already testing its models in the United States and abroad. Uber and Lyft have both expressed interest in developing their own fleets of driverless cars, which would eliminate the logistical (and financial issues associated with relying on human drivers. Uber recently announced it is teaming up with General Motors to develop its own fleet — trading access to driverless cars for GM’s access to data about how these vehicles react in real-world situations.

Autonomous vehicles have the potential to effect everything from transportation planning and infrastructure to land use, congestion and parking planning and even mass transit options. Local and regional government agencies must expect that autonomous vehicles will radically reshape our roads and the places they will take us. It is imperative to speak up now and avoid being drowned out by the roar of engines racing to have their vision of the future enshrined into law.

Photo credit: Photographing Travis via Foter.com / CC BY

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