California drivers are already sharing the highway with driverless cars, but it may not be long before self-driving big-rigs get the green light as well.
On Wednesday morning, state regulators at the California DMV are releasing another round of proposed regulations to start a statewide testing program for driverless trucks weighing more than 10,000 pounds.
The DMV released its first draft last year, and the basic rules are remaining intact, which means the process would largely mirror the testing program for driverless cars, where companies first test the vehicles with a safety driver in the front seat who could take over if needed, and then move on to testing without any driver at all.
The regulations also are expected to include a new process for citing autonomous vehicle companies when their cars or trucks violate traffic laws.
Previous reporting by the NBC Bay Area Investigative Unit exposed a loophole that found autonomous vehicles in California cannot be cited for moving traffic violations since transportation laws require tickets to be issued to actual humans.
As for the DMV’s latest proposal, the public will get the next 15 days to weigh in on the plan. The DMV has yet to release any sort of timeline on when exactly self-driving big-rigs could eventually hit the road in California.
Watch our entire investigative series
- Part 1: Driverless cars seek San Francisco expansion despite worries tech is unsafe
- Part 2: CPUC votes to expand driverless car operations in San Francisco
- Part 3: San Francisco city attorney files motion to pump the brakes on driverless cars
- Part 4: Google’s Waymo says insurance data shows its driverless cars are safer than humans
- Part 5: Hit-and-run driver strikes pedestrian, tossing her into path of Cruise car in San Francisco
- Part 6: Driverless trucks and robot deliveries promise fewer traffic jams than robotaxis
- Part 7: Cruise says its robotaxis can now better detect emergency vehicles
- Part 8: California DMV orders Cruise’s driverless cars off the road
- Part 9: Driverless cars immune from traffic tickets in California under current laws
- Part 10: GM’s Cruise lays off nearly 25% of its workforce
- Part 11: Waymo’s driverless cars surpass 7 million miles, but are they safer than human drivers?
- Part 12: Cruise probe blames poor internet, “flawed” decisions for company’s woes
- Part 13: Driverless Cruise car accused of nearly hitting child following similar near miss
- Part 14: Cruise offers to pay $112,500 in fines to settle claims it misled regulators
- Part 15: Uber Eats now uses Waymo Self-Driving cars to offer driverless deliveries
- Part 16: Bills aimed at closing traffic ticket loophole for driverless cars get initial green light
- Part 17: School crossing guards say they’ve had to dodge driverless cars to avoid being hit
- Part 18: Cruise ordered to pay $112,500 in penalties for withholding info from regulators
- Part 19: Waymo waitlist over in SF, all can hail driverless cars
- Part 20: SF Mayor vows to hold driverless cars accountable after NBC Bay Area report
- Part 21: San Francisco officials meet with Waymo to discuss safety concerns near schools
- Part 22: California DMV gears up to allow driverless trucking despite calls to restrict big rigs
- Part 23: Cruise to abandon robotaxi business after tumultuous year
- Part 24: Waymo’s robotaxis surpass 25 million miles, but are they safer than humans?
- Part 25: Waymo robotaxi rear-ended in fatal multi-car collision in San Francisco
- Part 26: Multi-car wreck slams Waymo, marks first time driverless car involved in fatal crash
- Part 27: Waymo’s driverless cars reach Silicon Valley, but when can you hail ride to SFO?
- Part 28: Waymo says its driverless cars are better than humans at avoiding crashes
- Part 29: Farmers fuming over California’s ban on driverless tractors, other autonomous robots
- Part 30: Congressman wants to know how often driverless cars impede police, public transit
- Part 31: What happened when we took a driverless Waymo on the highway
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