National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Administrator Jonathan Morrison issued a directive to autonomous vehicle (AV) developers on Wednesday, stating that it is unacceptable for their vehicles to interfere with first responders or authorities.
Morrison noted in it letter that the agency has “identified a clear pattern of driverless autonomous vehicles interfering with law enforcement and other first responders,” citing cases in which these vehicles entered active emergency scenes, blocked the paths of ambulances and firefighters, or failed to recognize or respond to basic safety conditions such as flashing lights, flares, smoke, fire, and traffic cones.
The agency has demanded that antivirus developers submit their “solutions” to this problem before the end of the month.
“Let me be clear: the inability to detect and respond appropriately to such situations represents a functional insufficiency,” Morrison’s letter says. “Emergency scenes are not rare or extreme ‘edge cases.’ As such, NHTSA today calls for action for AV developers and operators to immediately focus their resources on addressing this issue.”
The agency does not explicitly mention any particular company in the letter; However, details suggest it is aimed at robotaxi operators like Waymo.
TechCrunch has reached out to Waymo for comment and will update the article once the company responds.
a previous TechCrunch investigation found that Waymo, which operates the largest robotaxi fleet in the United States, with vehicles in cities including Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Francisco, has had repeated run-ins with first responders. In at least six incidents identified by TechCrunch through March of this year, first responders had to take control of Waymo vehicles and pull them out of traffic during emergency situations. In one case, an officer was responding to a mass shooting. In June, an officer was recorded moving a Waymo to unblock a road for first responders heading to a natural gas explosion at an apartment building.
The agency’s letter to AV developers does not say what the consequences would be if the request is ignored. Nor does it describe what acceptable solutions would be. But the agency does imply that it would hold companies accountable, just as it does human drivers who impede compliance with the law.
“Every second matters when law enforcement officers, firefighters or paramedics respond to a call because lives are at stake,” the letter states. “That is why human drivers who impede these operations are subject to fines and even jail terms.”
The agency also noted in a news release accompanying the letter that it is moving forward with updating the requirements of the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), which govern vehicle design and equipment requirements. These proposed changes could help autonomous vehicle companies like Tesla and Zoox, which are developing vehicles without steering wheels, pedals or other features needed in human-driven cars. The agency has already proposed rules that would eliminate the need for windshield wipers, sunshades, defogging systems and tire placards. The agency published a new Regulatory Plan and Unified Agenda 2026 last week, presenting his proposals.
When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This does not affect our editorial independence.