Canada lagging in driverless cars race
Canada needs to accelerate its efforts to develop regulations for autonomous vehicles, an advocate group says, or risk falling behind other countries in the race to bring driverless cars to the roads.
The U.S. Congressional subcommittee on Digital Commerce and Consumer Protection held a hearing on self-driving legislation last week that included witness testimony from representatives from the automotive industry, policy analysts, and legal experts as well as discussions about 14 bills being drafted by Republicans.
In Canada, Ontario remains the only province that allows the testing of autonomous vehicles on roads with a permit. The Senate’s Transportation and Communications Committee is studying the issues that need to be addressed so Canada can bring driverless cars to the roads, but the report is not expected until the end of the year.
While Barrie Kirk, the executive director of the Canadian Automated Vehicles Centre of Excellence (CAVCOE), commends the government’s efforts to study potential challenges, he says there needs to be more regulatory action now.
“When I look at what’s happening in the U.S. Congress and the Department of Transportation and that they’re looking at federal guidelines for what the states should do, I think we need to move more quickly,” Kirk said.
“I think there have been too many studies happening, and not enough decisions being made.”
In the U.S., House Republicans are drafting regulations for autonomous vehicles. Among the drafts is the PAVE Act, a bill that would expand the number of vehicles that can be exempted from the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard, from 2,500 to 100,000, a rule that currently prevents the sale of self-driving vehicles.
While automakers called for the federal government to set rules but not over-regulate, consumer advocates expressed concerns last week about adequate safety regulations before driverless vehicles hit the road. Republicans and Democrats were also divided on what the regulatory framework should look like — but it’s a step forward, said Michael Ramsey, an autonomous vehicle analyst at Gartner Inc., a technology research firm.
“I think regulations are absolutely the first challenge that needs to be solved when it comes to autonomous vehicles. It’s the primary inhibitor,” Ramsey said.
Kirk says Canada should prioritize moving forward with implementing a regulatory framework, as the country is “dead last” among G7 nations when it comes to getting ready for the arrival of selfdriving cars. He said there needs to be more coordination between the Innovation, Science and Economic Development — which could foster technological innovation — and Transport Canada, which would be in charge of vehicle safety standards and regulations.
“I think there is a recognition from many people I’ve spoken with that we need to break down those silos and work more horizontally,” Kirk said, pointing to the United Kingdom’s new Centre for Connected and Autonomous Vehicles, a new policy unit to address the challenges and opportunities with autonomous vehicles.
Another challenge, Kirk says, will be getting federal and provincial governments to work together in bringing forward legislation.
Ramsey says the most important thing to consider in terms of regulations surrounding autonomous vehicles is ensuring governments have the ability to recall vehicles if they feel they are unsafe. “I think the federal governments should be involved in creating frameworks that provinces are encouraged to follow and then give a regulatory body the capability to go in and take vehicles off the road.”
We need to move more quickly. I think there have been too many studies ... and not enough decisions being made.