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Google ‘Disappointed’ by California’s New Self-Driving Car Regulations

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Transportation Sec'y Foxx Discusses Future Transportation Trends With Google CEO
Google's Chris Urmson (R) shows a Google self-driving car to U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx (L) and Google Chairman Eric Schmidt (C) at the Google headquarters on February 2, 2015 in Mountain View, California. U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx joined Google Chairman Eric Schmidt for a fireside chat where he unveiled Beyond Traffic, a new analysis from the U.S. Department of Transportation that anticipates the trends and choices facing our transportation system over the next three decades.Justin Sullivan—Getty Images
By Daniel White

Google is not happy with the preliminary rules California issued Wednesday to regulate the production and sales of self-driving vehicles.

A first draft of the rules place strict limits on the new technology, Fortune reports. The rules would require a licensed driver to be present—and capable of taking control—in the vehicle while driving, as well as prohibit the use of driverless cars without a steering wheel or user-controllable brakes. California also banned the sale of self-driving cars, limiting manufacturers to leasing the vehicles.

The news upset the search giant, which has made significant investments in self-driving technology.

“We’re gravely disappointed that California is already writing a ceiling on the potential for fully self-driving cars to help all of us who live here,” Google said in a statement released Wednesday.

Google has been testing a fleet of autonomous vehicles in hope of a 2020 commercial release, according to Fortune.

 

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