The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has announced a new consent order with Cruise, GM’s self-driving technology division, in response to the tech company’s failure to fully report a crash that involved a pedestrian injury last year. The consent order includes a $1.5 million penalty, as well as non-monetary provisions. Looking ahead, the NHTSA will meet with the AV tech company on a quarterly basis to discuss the state of its operations and reporting.
“It is vitally important for companies developing automated driving systems to prioritize safety and transparency from the start,” said NHTSA Deputy Administrator Sophie Shulman. “NHTSA is using its enforcement authority to ensure operators and manufacturers comply with all legal obligations and work to protect all road users.”
The new consent order is in response to an incident that occurred on October 2nd, 2023 in which a pedestrian was “launched” in front of an autonomous Cruise vehicle after they were struck by an adjacent, non-Cruise-related, human-driven vehicle. The pedestrian was subsequently trapped under the AV and dragged for approximately 20 feet at 7 mph, while first responders were forced to use the jaws of life to lift the AV and free the injured pedestrian.
In the months following the incident, the AV tech company underwent a major restructuring effort, firing roughly a quarter of its staff. Several company executives left, including company CEO Kyle Vogt. The company also paid off a series of fines and hired an independent third-party to investigate the incident and identify company and technology failure points. Mark Reuss later publicly remarked that it would take years to regain public trust in AV technology.
According to the NHTSA, Cruise failed to disclose details in two of its post-crash reports following the October 2023 incident, per the NHTSA’s Standing Genera Order for crashes involving autonomous driving systems.
Looking ahead, the NHTSA will require the AV tech company to report a variety of information regarding its autonomous testing practices, including miles traveled, the number of Cruise vehicles in operation, and whether or not those vehicles were operated without a human driver onboard, as well a summary of software updates, traffic citations, and other safety performance benchmarks. Finally, the company is required to submit a final report overviewing its compliance with the consent order and the state of its operations.
Comments
How much is the driver that caused the accident getting fined?
How do you know the other driver was at fault?
Okay … how much was the pedestrian fined?
” Mark Reuss later publicly remarked that it would take years to regain public trust in AV technology.”
And it will take years for the GM customer base to regain the confidence and trust in GM to buy another vehicle that they market.