Bill Text: NJ A1589 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Permits testing and use of autonomous vehicles on State roadways under certain circumstances.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-09 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee [A1589 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-A1589-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman PAMELA R. LAMPITT
District 6 (Burlington and Camden)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Conaway
SYNOPSIS
Permits testing and use of autonomous vehicles on State roadways under certain circumstances.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning the testing and use of autonomous vehicles and supplementing Title 39 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):
"Autonomous mode" means the operation of an autonomous vehicle without the active control of a human being.
"Autonomous technology" means technology that has the capability to drive a motor vehicle without active physical control or monitoring by an operator.
"Autonomous vehicle" means a motor vehicle that uses autonomous technology, including sensors, global positioning system coordinates, or any other technology to perform the mechanical operations of driving.
"Commission" means the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, or successor agency.
"Manufacturer" means the person that originally manufactures the autonomous technology and equips autonomous technology on a non-autonomous motor vehicle or, in the case of a motor vehicle not originally equipped with autonomous technology by the motor vehicle manufacturer, the person that modifies the motor vehicle by installing autonomous technology to convert the motor vehicle to an autonomous vehicle.
"Operator" means a person who is seated in the driver's seat of an autonomous vehicle or has the ability to cause the autonomous technology to engage.
"Sensors" include, without limitation, any cameras, lasers, radar, or other technology used in the operation of an autonomous vehicle.
2. An autonomous vehicle may be operated on any public highway, road, or street within this State for testing purposes by an operator who possesses the proper class of license, as determined by the commission, for the type of vehicle being operated, provided that the following requirements are met:
a. the autonomous vehicle is being operated on a public highway, road, or street in this State solely by employees, contractors, or other persons designated by the manufacturer of the autonomous technology or autonomous vehicle;
b. the operator is seated in the driver's seat, monitoring the safe operation of the autonomous vehicle, and is capable of taking over immediate manual control of the autonomous vehicle in the event of an autonomous technology failure or other emergency; and
c. prior to the start of testing in this State, the manufacturer performing the testing obtains an instrument of insurance, surety bond, or proof of self-insurance in the amount of $5,000,000, and shall provide evidence of the insurance, surety bond, or self-insurance to the commission, in a form and manner determined by the commission.
3. An autonomous vehicle shall not be operated on a public highway, road, or street in this State for testing purposes until the commission approves an application submitted by the manufacturer to the commission, in a form and manner determined by the commission. The application shall contain requirements that include, but are not limited to:
a. a certification by the manufacturer that the autonomous technology satisfies the following requirements:
(1) the autonomous technology has the ability to be easily engaged or disengaged by the operator;
(2) the autonomous vehicle has a visual indicator inside the cabin of the vehicle to indicate when the autonomous technology is engaged;
(3) the autonomous vehicle has a system to safely alert the operator if an autonomous technology failure is detected while the autonomous technology is engaged, and when an alert is given, the autonomous vehicle shall either:
(a) require the operator to take control of the autonomous vehicle; or
(b) be capable of coming to a complete stop if the operator does not or is unable to take control of the autonomous vehicle.
(4) the autonomous vehicle shall allow the operator to take control in multiple ways, including, but not limited to, the use of the brake, the accelerator pedal, or the steering wheel, and shall alert the operator that the autonomous technology has been disengaged;
(5) the autonomous vehicle and autonomous technology meet the safety and performance standards provided in State and federal law for the vehicle's model year; and
(6) the autonomous vehicle has a separate mechanism, in addition to, and separate from, any other mechanism required by law, to capture and store the autonomous technology sensor data for at least 30 seconds before a collision occurs between the autonomous vehicle and another vehicle, object, or person while the vehicle is operating in autonomous mode. The autonomous technology sensor data shall be stored for three years from the date of the collision and captured and stored in a read-only format by the mechanism so that the data is retained until extracted from the mechanism by an external device capable of downloading and storing the data.
b. A certification that the manufacturer has tested the autonomous technology on private roads, lots, or tracks, or out-of-State public highways, roads, and streets, and has complied with other testing standards, if any, established by the commission.
c. A certification that the manufacturer will maintain a surety bond, or proof of self-insurance as specified in regulations adopted by the commission, in an amount of $5,000,000.
4. The commission shall approve an application submitted by a manufacturer pursuant to section 3 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) if the commission finds that the applicant has submitted all required information, completed testing necessary to satisfy the commission that the autonomous vehicle is safe to operate on the public highways, roads, and streets of this State for testing purposes, and complied with the regulations adopted by the commission pursuant to P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
5. The manufacturer of the autonomous technology installed on an autonomous vehicle shall provide a written disclosure to the purchaser of the autonomous vehicle that describes what information, including personal information, is collected by the autonomous technology equipped on the vehicle.
6. The commission shall adopt, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
7. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill permits the testing and use of autonomous vehicles on the public highways, roads, and streets of this State. An autonomous vehicle may be operated on any highway, road, or street within this State for testing purposes by a driver who possesses the proper class of license, as determined by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (commission), for the type of vehicle being operated if: the autonomous vehicle is being operated on a public highway, road, or street in this State solely by employees, contractors, or other persons designated by the manufacturer of the autonomous technology; the operator is seated in the driver's seat, monitoring the safe operation of the autonomous vehicle, and capable of taking over immediate manual control of the autonomous vehicle in the event of an autonomous technology failure or other emergency; and, prior to the start of testing in this State, the manufacturer performing the testing obtains an instrument of insurance, surety bond, or proof of self-insurance in the amount of $5,000,000, and provides evidence of the insurance, surety bond, or self-insurance to the commission, in a form and manner determined by the commission.
The bill requires the manufacturer of the autonomous technology to apply for and receive approval from the commission prior to operating an autonomous vehicle on a highway, road, or street in this State for testing purposes. The application is required to contain: a certification that the autonomous technology meets certain requirements; a certification that the manufacturer has tested the autonomous technology on private roads, lots, or tracks, or out-of-State public highways, roads, and streets, and has complied with any other testing standards established by the commission; and a certification that the manufacturer will maintain a surety bond, or proof of self-insurance as specified in regulations adopted by the commission, in an amount of $5,000,000.
The bill requires the manufacturer of the autonomous technology to provide a written disclosure to the purchaser of an autonomous vehicle that describes what information is collected by the autonomous technology.
