Uber Informed the California DMV Its Rules Don't Apply to Their Cars
Uber Technologies Inc. have again ignored mandates from California regulators that the ride-services firm must apply for a permit to test self-driving cars, setting the table for a potential legal battle. Uber’s grounds for refusing to apply are that the autonomous vehicles are not quite self-reliant enough to warrant the paperwork.
Unveiled to the public on Wednesday, the company’s self-driving cars faced immediate criticism in San Francisco after news broke that one had breezed through a red light and another almost caused an accident. The general denunciation forced the California Department of Motor Vehicles to notify Uber to cease operations, to which it responded with a frank “no.”
“We respectfully disagree with the California Department of Motor Vehicles legal interpretation of today’s autonomous regulations,” Anthony Levandowski, vice president of Uber’s Advanced Technologies Group, said on a call with Reuters.
According to Levandowski, Uber’s test vehicles, which were promoted as self-driving, are not capable of being driven without a human occupant actively controlling the vehicle while an engineer monitors everything.
California’s DMV requires that any companies testing autonomous vehicles be evaluated and given a permit before testing begins. So far 20 other companies, including Ford, Google, and Tesla Motors, have managed to obtain permits for their test vehicles while Uber hasn’t even bothered to apply.
When asked if Uber was trying to avoid the mandatory accident reports permittees are required to give the DMV, Levandowski rejected the notion. “We think that’s a very important part of building trust and understanding,” he said. “The problem is that [the regulation] doesn’t apply to us.”
He then reminded reporters that test cars include a human driver that takes control in construction zones or areas with dense pedestrian traffic. Levandowski compared Uber’s self-driving system to Tesla’s Autopilot system and other semi-autonomous assistance features that are common on newer vehicles.
“This type of technology is commonplace on thousands of cars driving in the Bay Area today, without any DMV permit at all,” he said.
This current squabble is only the most recent between Uber and U.S. regulators. However, its current brazen noncompliance in California will likely force the company to face litigation over repeatedly failing to get the proper credentials. In a letter to Uber on Wednesday, the DMV’s chief counsel said the agency will take legal action if “Uber does not confirm immediately that it will stop its launch and seek a testing permit.”
[Image: Volvo]
A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.
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The state should yank the registrations and impound the Uber Self Driving cars for driving without a permit. Uber can sue to get them back. If they are in the right, they can resume driving. If they are in the wrong, they don't get the cars back until they have the proper paperwork.
Instead of flaunting his oppositional-defiant disorder (common to many children these days), why doesn't Travis just go do his testing in Michigan, where apparently they just passed super permissive regs for self-driving cars? Michigan's going to be crawling with self-driving Chevy Bolts next year, why not some self-driving Uber Volvos?