Attorney Amy Witherite: Finally Some Common Sense About Driverless Trucks on Texas Highways

DALLAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Attorney and traffic safety expert Amy Witherite is glad to see human beings back in the cabs of autonomous trucks on Texas highways. Aurora Innovations reversed course less than three weeks after it said it would let the trucks operate at speeds up to 75 miles an hour between Dallas and Houston without anyone in the cab.

“Common sense has finally prevailed,” said Amy Witherite an attorney and truck safety expert who has been warning about the dangers posed by driverless trucks for months.

“There has been nowhere near the amount of testing required to show these trucks can operate safely in the challenging environment on Texas highways,” said Witherite. “With billions of dollars at stake and little or no government regulations federal and state officials are letting the fox guard the henhouse by allowing for-profit companies to determine whether their technology is safe.”

Even organizations formed to support the deployment of autonomous vehicles recognize the need for federal standards to be in place. According to the Autonomous Vehicle Industry Association, “only the federal government can uniformly regulate the design, construction and performance of the vehicle.”

Currently, autonomous vehicles must only follow National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, which were written before automated systems were developed. This creates a regulatory gap between traditional vehicles and newer vehicles equipped with emerging technology.

According to the Washington Post, the “NHTSA, a small, specialized team focused on autonomous vehicles has lost most of its staff, according to two former agency employees. NHTSA has recently lost many of its employees to Trump administration budget cut.”

“The amount of damage that can be caused by an 80,000-pound tractor trailer far exceeds the severity of accidents involving cars and SUVs,” noted Witherite. “Texas highways are often crowded and full of complex and unpredictable situations from sudden changes in the weather and ongoing construction to accidents and dangerous drivers.”

“At this point, it took another company PACCAR, Inc. which manufactures the trucks to demand humans remain in the cab of these vehicles,” said Witherite. “We can only hope that regulators and the public will demand that this commonsense approach continues as this new technology is developed in the future.”

The Witherite Law Group specializes in vehicle accident cases and offers crucial support for individuals involved in accidents with driverless vehicles. For more information visit their website. www.witheritelaw.com.