Safety exemption reviews for self-driving cars are getting streamlined

The Trump administration wants to make it easier for automakers to release self-driving cars that don’t have standard controls like steering wheels or brake pedals.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in a letter to stakeholders Friday said it was simplifying the process for auto companies seeking to be exempt from safety regulations compelling mirrors, brakes, and other traditional controls to be in vehicles. 

The NHTSA has the authority to grant exemptions up to 2,500 vehicles per manufacturer. But the process has proved time-consuming and frustrating for automakers hoping to secure a federal reprieve from safety guidelines. Many requests gather dust for years without the NHTSA taking action on the application.

“We’ve streamlined this process to remove another barrier to transportation innovation in the United States, ensure American AV companies can out-compete international rivals, and maintain safety,” said Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy in a statement. He added the current process “ensnares companies with  unnecessary red tape that makes it impossible to keep pace with the latest technology.”

The Biden administration set up an identical, slimmed-down exemption process for auto and tech companies last year with self-driving cars. But they obligated those firms to share data with the government to cultivate more transparency.

Tesla is about to release a highly-anticipated “robotaxi, set for June 22 as more self-driving cars hit the road. Waymo, another autonomous driving firm, already has fully driverless cars operating in Phoenix, San Francisco, and parts of Los Angeles and Austin.

—Shannon Carroll contributed to this article.