New York is soliciting applications from companies that want to test self-driving vehicles or autonomous driving technology within the state.
A provision in the new budget bill adopted last month allows testing under a one-year pilot program that Governor Andrew Cuomo said he hopes will encourage the development of a self-driving vehicle industry in New York.
The state Department of Motor Vehicles' application says the program is open to companies demonstrating or testing autonomous vehicles or technology for self-parking vehicles.
Among other things, an operator licensed to drive in New York must be in the driver's seat of the vehicle when it is being operated on a public roadway in New York and testing on public highways must be under the direct supervision and approval of New York State Police. Only New York State Police can supervise them under the legislation. Companies must reimburse the state police for the time officers spend overseeing tests or demonstrations.
The vehicles must also carry a minimum of $5 million in insurance coverage.
“We are taking a careful yet balanced approach to incorporating autonomous vehicles on our roads to reduce dangerous driving habits, decrease the number of accidents and save lives on New York roadways,” Governor Cuomo said in a statement this week.
Companies must report on their demonstrations or tests to the Department of Motor Vehicles, which will prepare a report on the program. While the program expires on April 1, 2018, state officials have said they will want to renew it if it proves successful at enhancing safety and encouraging commercial autonomous vehicle development in the state.
Adoption of the program was necessary to legally bypass state Vehicle and Traffic Law §1226, which expressly prohibits motor vehicles from being operated in the state unless a driver has at least one hand on the steering wheel at all times. The only previous exception in the law was for vehicles specially equipped for handicapped drivers.
Governor Cuomo has noted that other states, especially California, led development of new transportation technologies. According to The Recorder, a sibling publication, permits for autonomous vehicle testing and deployment has been issued by California by 30 companies, including Apple Inc. and Uber Technologies Inc.
The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) reported this month that New York is among 33 states whose Legislatures have had bills related to autonomous vehicles filed this year.
Since 2011, when Nevada became the first state to authorize autonomous vehicles, the NCSL said Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Louisiana, Michigan, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Utah, and Virginia have enacted self-driving car legislation.
Governors in Virginia, Arizona and Massachusetts have also acted administratively to establish autonomous vehicle research and testing programs, according to the NCSL.
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