According to a report, the second Trump administration could seek to improve the regulatory environment for self-driving cars as a means to accelerate development and promote innovation in the sector.
Citing anonymous sources, Bloomberg reported on Sunday that members of Donald Trump’s transition team advisers have said the new administration plans to prioritize establishing federal rules for fully self-driving vehicles within the Transportation Department. On Monday, Trump also nominated former congressman and recent congresswoman from Wisconsin Sean Duffy, co-host of Fox Business lead the department.
Some progress has already been made at the federal level in the field of self-driving cars. NHTSA finalized a rule allowing cars in 2022 without steering wheel and pedals to meet safety standards, although under the same rule manufacturers are still limited to deploying only 2,500 self-driving vehicles per year under an approved waiver. Manufacturers are also facing changing regulations in different states.
Reducing barriers to self-driving cars would benefit one of Trump’s biggest donors, Elon Muskwho, as CEO of Tesla, wants to start mass production of self-driving vehicles without a steering wheel and pedals as early as 2026. Tesla showed off the Cybercab and Robovan self-driving vehicles in October, which the company plans to offer to both private and fleet buyers.
Trump also wants Musk to lead an outside advisory group aimed at improving government efficiency, alongside former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
The Trump administration will reportedly look into that as well Eliminate current federal tax credits on electric vehicles. Reuters reported on November 14 that Trump’s transition team is discussing the move and that Tesla would support it because the company sees its rivals as worse off without the credit.