A federal transportation safety agency proposes a voluntary program to help the auto industry safely develop automated driving systems.

If approved, the ADS-equipped Vehicle Safety, Transparency and Evaluation Program, or AV STEP, in the American tradition of intentionally catchy acronyms, would serve as a framework to evaluate and oversee ADS systems.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration program would be open to companies that operate ADS-equipped vehicles on public roads.

“Safe, transparent, and responsible development is critical for this technology to be trusted by the public and reach its full potential,” said NHTSA Chief Counsel Adam Raviv said in a press release on the proposal. He said the idea for the program comes at a “crucial” point for ADS technology development.

The U.S. transportation department agency alluded to many consumers' wariness of automated driving technology, particularly fully automated systems.

The proposed program would provide more transparency into ADS technology and help the agency observe and “oversee” it “as it matures,” along with furthering efforts to cut overall traffic injuries and deaths, it said.

“This enhanced transparency would promote the responsible development of ADS technology, as well as offer a way for vehicle manufacturers, operators, municipalities, researchers and policymakers to benefit from greater opportunities for public awareness and accelerated learning into the technology,” NHTSA said.

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