The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced on Friday it would accelerate the review process for autonomous vehicle (AV) deployment. The agency’s decision follows years of regulatory delays that forced automakers and other industry players to withdraw exemption applications repeatedly.
The NHTSA has the authority to approve up to 2,500 robotaxis annually per manufacturer for operation on US roads, but has spent years reviewing petitions without taking action. General Motors first sought approval in 2018, withdrew in 2020, reapplied in 2022, then withdrew again in October 2024 following regulatory inaction.
Ford similarly abandoned its 2021 petition in 2023, albeit only after closing its Argo AI self-driving venture. At the time, the automaker cited regulatory uncertainty amongst factors influencing its exit from AV development.
Meanwhile, Tesla plans to launch its long-expected robotaxi service on 22 June, though Chief Executive Elon Musk has confirmed those vehicles will retain required human controls to comply with current regulations. While the original robotaxi concept vehicles unveiled back in 2024 eschewed human controls, the pilot fleet will use Model Ys. Notably, the NHTSA sent Tesla correspondence in May requesting details about the planned service launch.
According to Reuters, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy criticised the existing process, stating the exemption system has been “bogging developers down in unnecessary red tape that makes it impossible to keep pace with the latest technologies.”
The Trump administration first outlined plans in April to expedite AV deployment by exempting certain models from safety requirements and reducing incident reporting obligations. The stated goal of this was to help US automakers compete more effectively with their faster-moving Chinese rivals in the still-nascent robotaxi segment.
