Reality check
https://www.autonews.com/mobility-report/musks-robotaxi-vows-conflicts-us-rulesAutomakers must secure permission from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration before putting cars on the road that lack a steering wheel or other controls required by US auto safety rules. If Tesla were to overcome that hurdle — which is by no means guaranteed — it could only put a few thousand robotaxis on the road in a given year, effectively rendering its slick self-driving taxi little more than a niche product.
Tesla hasn’t requested an exemption for the Cybercab, NHTSA said Tuesday afternoon. The agency to date has granted only one such application, in 2020, when it allowed startup Nuro to deploy low-speed, autonomous delivery vehicles designed to carry goods rather than people.
Tesla didn’t respond to a request for comment on its plans to seek regulatory approval. :D
For example, Tesla hasn’t applied for a driverless testing or deployment permit required in California, the company’s original home and where self-driving startups such as Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo and GM’s Cruise unit have fielded robotaxis.
“I think the bigger question are the state permits,” said Mary “Missy” Cummings, a George Mason University engineering professor and former NHTSA adviser who has been critical of Tesla’s driver-assist features known as Autopilot. Until Tesla provides the state with testing data, “they are years away from obtaining the necessary permits in California.”
“Any imminent regulatory hurdles are because Tesla does not have and cannot show a reasonably safe automated driving system,” he said.