California’s new self-driving car regulations are bad news for Google

Thanks to the California Autonomous Vehicle Testing Program, not to mention its wealth of engineering talent, California has become the most vibrant hub for self-driving vehicle development in the world, but the states’s Department of Motor Vehicles isn’t quite ready to fully embrace the technology. In a move that Google was “gravely disappointed” by, the state has proposed a series of regulations on self-driving vehicles that would seriously hinder the ability of companies to test out their prototypes on public roads. The regulations would be especially bad for Google, as some of the requirements for testing seem specifically designed to spite Google’s self-driving vehicle prototypes. 

California is not quite ready to let self-driving cars hit the road on their own. The state’s Department of Motor Vehicles on Wednesday issued a draft of potential regulations for putting regular people behind the wheel of autonomous vehicles. The draft is a big step toward legal recognition of self-driving technology, but it comes with significant requirements. The D.M.V. proposal would mandate that autonomous vehicles be operated by a licensed driver who could take over if necessary. That driver would also be on the hook for traffic violations. The manufacturers of self-driving cars would have to subject their vehicles to a third-party safety test. And they would apply for three-year permits that would allow them to lease but not sell self-driving cars to the public. Manufacturers would also have to regularly report accidents, come up with security measures to prevent hackers from taking over cars, and tell passengers what kind of data, beyond whatever information is needed to safely run the car, the companies are collecting about them. Self-driving cars are already a common sight around California, particularly in Mountain View, where Google is based and often tests the vehicles. But outside of press events and other private showings, regular people have yet to operate them.