Overview

• Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy announced that NHTSA has initiated three rulemakings in the federal Spring Unified Agenda to modernize safety rules for vehicles with automated driving systems and no manual controls.
• The targeted standards are FMVSS No. 102 on transmission shift position and related functions, FMVSS Nos. 103 and 104 on windshield defrosting/defogging and wiping/washing, and FMVSS No. 108 on lamps and reflective equipment.
• NHTSA officials say current standards assume a human driver, and updating or removing certain requirements could reduce costs while improving safety as autonomous technologies advance.
• The action is part of NHTSA’s Automated Vehicle Framework and follows this year’s move to streamline the Part 555 exemption process that allows limited sales of vehicles not fully compliant with FMVSS.
• Coverage notes mixed real-world context, including Tesla expanding robotaxi testing in Austin with safety operators repositioned to the driver’s seat and New York City taxi drivers criticizing Waymo’s local testing.