On Wednesday, the House Committee on Transportation held a hearing on autonomous vehicles, with both lawmakers and witnesses highlighting the safety benefits that AVs promise for U.S. roads. The hearing came only one day after the U.S. Department of Transportation released new data showing a 12 percent increase in traffic fatalities in 2021. National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) estimates that human error is a factor in 94 percent of crashes.

Chamber of Progress submitted testimony for the hearing, highlighting the safety benefits of AVs as well as the mobility that AVs can offer to non-driving communities, including disabled and older Americans.

“Traffic deaths are skyrocketing, and human error is to blame. It’s long past time for the federal government to provide the framework needed for autonomous vehicles,” said Chamber of Progress CEO Adam Kovacevich. “We can’t let another year go by without action.”

Today’s hearing in the House Transportation Committee is available here. For more on the benefits AVs have to offer, check out Chamber of Progress’s recent post on how AVs are a game changer for mobility, safety, and the environment.

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Chamber of Progress (progresschamber.org) is a new center-left tech industry policy coalition promoting technology’s progressive future.  We work to ensure that all Americans benefit from technological leaps, and that the tech industry operates responsibly and fairly.  

Our corporate partners do not have a vote on or veto over our positions. We do not speak for individual partner companies and remain true to our stated principles even when our partners disagree.