Florida Senator says no Permit is Needed for Driverless Cars

When Uber hit the road with self-driving cars in San Francisco in December, California lawmakers quickly hit the brakes. But, regulators in Florida wanted to take a different path. State Sen. Jeff Brandes, R-St. Petersburg tweeted, saying:

“Hey @Uber, unlike California we in Florida welcome driverless cars – no permit required. #OpenForBusiness #FlaPol”

(Brandes has been advocating for laws to allow driverless cars. In 2012, the Florida Legislature passed a law co-sponsored by him that allowed a person with a valid driver’s license to operate an autonomous vehicle.)

Currently, there are several car companies at work developing fully autonomous (self-driving) cars. But it might still be a couple of years before they are available due to the cost, questions about liability and technology, and as state governments figure out regulations and safety standards. (In September 2016, federal transportation officials issued loose guidelines for driverless cars which gave companies the green light to push ahead.)

From the article:

“Some states have already done so. Since 2011, eight states — Nevada, California, Florida, Louisiana, Michigan, North Dakota, Tennessee and Utah — and the District of Columbia have passed legislation related to autonomous vehicles, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Governors in Arizona and Massachusetts issued executive orders related to autonomous vehicles. Legislation has failed or is pending in several other states.

California passed a law in 2012 that allowed the testing of autonomous vehicles on public roads. Companies must apply for state permits and put up a $5 million bond. About 20 companies, including Tesla, Google and Mercedes-Benz, have been granted such permits.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NodzOaLJENo

In 2016, Florida’s legislature passed new rules eliminating some of the previous requirements- like the $5 million in insurance. It also dropped the requirement that a human operator be present in the vehicle, as long as an operator can be alerted in case of technology failure and stop the vehicle.

It will be interesting to watch this process play out all over the country, as self-driving cars become more popular, available, and present on our roads.