Autonomous vehicle (AV) technology offers the possibility of fundamentally
changing transportation. Equipping cars and light vehicles
with this technology will likely reduce crashes, energy consumption,
and pollution—and reduce the costs of congestion.
This technology is most easily conceptualized using a five-part
continuum suggested by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), with different benefits of the technology realized
at different levels of automation:
• Level 0: The human driver is in complete control of all functions
of the car.
• Level 1: One function is automated.
• Level 2: More than one function is automated at the same time
(e.g., steering and acceleration), but the driver must remain constantly
attentive.
• Level 3: The driving functions are sufficiently automated that the
driver can safely engage in other activities.
• Level 4: The car can drive itself without a human driver.
Careful policymaking will be necessary to maximize the social
benefits that this technology will enable, while minimizing the disadvantages.
Yet policymakers are only beginning to think about the challenges
and opportunities this technology poses. The goal of this report
is to assist policymakers at the state and federal levels to make wise
policy decisions in this rapidly evolving area.