WASHINGTON (WKZO AM/FM) — A bill authored by Michigan Senator Gary Peters that would authorize the manufacture and sale of thousands self-driving cars each year that would be exempt from federal safety standards has cleared a U.S. Senate committee.
But auto safety advocate and former federal administrator Joan Claybrook says anyone who buys one of these cars is putting their life at risk. She says they will “become crash test dummies” for the auto industry.
Dr. Stephen Hargarten at the Medical College of Wisconsin says they are rushing the technology in an attempt to recoup some of their investment and putting lives at risk.
Peters says the waiver of safety requirements gives the automakers room to experiment and develop the artificial intelligence needed to make them function.
The Safety experts say they shouldn’t put innocent lives at risk to accomplish that.
The Legislation passed out of committee unamimously and may be on a fast track.
