US DoT seeks voluntary AV standards

US authorities have signalled that voluntary – rather than compulsory – standards will be the way forward to integrate automated vehicles (AVs) into the country’s transport system. The US Department of Transportation (USDOT) has issued new AV guidance but warns that the new document - Preparing for the Future of Transportation: Automated Vehicles 3.0 (AV 3.0) - does not replace the voluntary guidance it provided in Automated Driving Systems 2.0: A Vision for Safety. “The safe integration of automated
October 11, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
US authorities have signalled that voluntary – rather than compulsory – standards will be the way forward to integrate automated vehicles (AVs) into the country’s transport system.


The 324 US Department of Transportation (USDOT) has issued new AV guidance but warns that the new document - Preparing for the Future of Transportation: Automated Vehicles 3.0 (AV 3.0) - does not replace the voluntary guidance it provided in Automated Driving Systems 2.0: A Vision for Safety.

“The safe integration of automated vehicle technology into our transportation system will increase productivity, facilitate freight movement and create new types of jobs,” says US transportation secretary Elaine L. Chao.

AV 3.0 is concerned with “identifying and supporting the development of automation-related voluntary standards developed through organisations and associations, which can be an effective non-regulatory means to advance the integration of automation technologies”.

It also says the USDoT will “interpret and, consistent with all applicable notice and comment requirements, adapt the definitions of ‘driver’ or ‘operator’ as appropriate to recognise that such terms do not refer exclusively to a human, but may include an automated system”.

The guidance also states that the DoT is “continuing its work to preserve the ability for transportation safety applications to function in the 5.9 GHz spectrum”.

The DoT says that the document incorporates the results of “extensive stakeholder engagement” with manufacturers, technology developers, infrastructure owners and operators, bus transit, and state and local governments.

The draft guidance is to be published in the Federal Register for public review and comment.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • ITS America appoints new technical editor
    April 24, 2013
    ITS America has chosen Dr John Miles as technical editor for a new web-based resource on ITS. With funding from the US Department of Transportation (USDOT), the society plans to publish in mid-2014 in partnership with the World Road Association (PIARC) on the latter’s website.
    Read More
  • Here: AI has place in ‘privacy by design’
    June 23, 2020
    Artificial intelligence may improve traffic in cities and keep location data private, but Here Technologies shows that it only takes four points of anonymous data to predict your identity.
    Read More
  • Hamburg’s on-demand alternative to commuting by car
    December 5, 2017
    As Hamburg is confirmed as the host for the 2021 ITS World Congress, David Crawford looks at the city’s moves towards enabling MaaS-type operations. Germany’s second-largest city, Hamburg, is pinning its civic reputation on having its promised all-electric, on-demand, shuttle bus ridesharing service up and running by 2018. Partners in the three-year project are regional metro and bus service provider Hamburger Hochbahn and Volkswagen Group’s Berlinbased mobility innovation subsidiary Moia, which was set
    Read More
  • New solutions for catching texting drivers
    October 28, 2016
    Many countries have laws prohibiting texting while driving but enforcement is proving difficult – David Crawford looks at some new approaches being tried by authorities. Finding definitive solutions – technological, regulatory and educational - to the potentially lethal practice of people driving while using mobile phones is proving elusive, while the stakes grow higher.
    Read More

Highlighted Content