New Efforts At Autonomous Vehicle Legislation

In 2017, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the SELF DRIVE Act governing autonomous vehicles, but it stalled in the Senate. Last year, lawmakers failed to pass a bill before the December recess.

Today, the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee announced work on a “bipartisan and bicameral basis to develop a self-driving car bill.” They request input from automakers, safety groups, and other stakeholders before August 23. David Shepardson, reporting for Reuters:

“Right now various countries are exploring regulations that will shape the future of autonomous vehicles, and the U.S. risks losing its leadership in this life-saving, life-changing technology, so we urge Congress to move forward now, this year,” spokeswoman [for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers] Gloria Bergquist said.

Since the new bill is being written with input from both chambers, this version stands a better chance of avoiding a breakdown like last year.

How Self-Driving Cars Visualize The World

Chris Umson is the Director of Self-Driving Cars at Google.  In this TED talk, he demonstrates what the world looks like from the perspective of a self-driving car.  My first reaction is to notice how complicated and dynamic even an ordinary driving scenario is.

Since watching this talk, I've become more conscious of how I perceive and process road conditions, both when driving and biking.  I've noticed myself looking farther ahead and slowing down in ambiguous situations -- where it's unclear, based on the available data, what I should do.