Dive Brief:
- A group of Delaware senators is looking to restrict AV testing and deployment in the state for vehicles weighing 10,001 pounds or more by requiring a safety operator aboard.
- An updated proposal seeks to clarify the original bill from March and also require the state’s Department of Transportation to submit a report to legislators by Jan. 1, 2029.
- The update means the bill is even closer to resembling one going before the California State Senate.
Dive Insight:
The bill threatens to poke a hole in medium- and heavy-duty AV use, although early deployment is focused in the southern U.S. due to weather concerns.
Currently, 16 states implicitly allow driverless deployment of autonomous vehicles, and 24 states expressly do so, per an Aurora Innovation investor presentation earlier this year.
In April, Kentucky became the 25th state to allow driverless operations, according to the Autonomous Vehicle Industry Association. The bill survived a gubernatorial veto and Teamsters opposition.
But the updated proposal from the Delaware State Senate was enough to draw concerns from AVIA. The group said that the AV industry opposes the bill for “preemptively and prematurely banning AV trucks in Delaware.”
AVIA also said the self-driving trucks will thrive alongside truck drivers to meet growing freight demand and supply chain challenges.
