General Motors has announced that it has filed a Safety Petition with the Department of Transportation to deploy a fleet of self-driving vehicles in 2019 that will not have a steering wheel, driver or pedals. The self-driving car is the fourth-generation self-driving Cruise AV, which is based on the Chevy Bolt.
The petition will allow the self-driving vehicles to operate on public roads without needing to meet the 16 Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards that cover vehicles with human drivers. The safety standards don’t really apply to autonomous vehicles, so GM is hoping that the waiver will allow it to launch up to 2,500 self-driving vehicles a year that will be used as taxis.
NHTSA released a statement about the position, where it stated that it will “review this petition and give it careful consideration.”
Source: GM and Automotive News
