Self-driving cars 'almost' legal

California's legislature has taken its first steps towards putting autonomous cars on the road. Following in the footsteps of its counterpart in Nevada, the State Senate has approved a bill setting out guidelines on the application of traffic laws to self-driven vehicles, legalising them for testing on public roads.

Steered through unanimous, bipartisan passage by tech-enthusiast state senator Alex Padilla, the bill calls on the Department of the California Highway Patrol and the Department of Motor Vehicles for guidelines on the operation of the vehicles – not just in the presence of a licensed driver, but without.

At least at first, however, each car would need a licensed driver on board.

Padilla sees the bill as crucial to the development of a field for which 'California is uniquely positioned to be the global leader', with Silicon Valley providing the ideal practical and cultural environment in which to foster its growth.

He cites the potential reduction in road injuries and fatalities as the primary reason for forging ahead with it. "Thousands of Californians tragically die in auto accidents each year. The vast majority of these collisions are due to human error," he said in a statement after the bill was passed.

"Through the use of computers, sensors and other systems, an autonomous vehicle can analyse the driving environment more quickly and accurately and can operate the vehicle more safely."

It would also create jobs, he added.

But it wouldn't be lost on him what a neat fit it is with the growing imperatives to reduce fuel consumption and CO2 emissions - autonomous operation is the single most influential factor in allowing auto makers to pare down weight with the reduced need for crash protection.

But the vote remains just another step towards realising one of the automotive industry's greatest leaps forward – Google's fleet of autonomous Priuses will remain foot bound until the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration comes up with federal guidelines on driverless driving.

But the momentum appears to be there, with Wired reporting that Arizona, Florida, Hawaii and Oklahoma are also considering similar legislation.

There's also plenty of wider support from a raft of stakeholders beyond Google, including the Automobile Club of Southern California, the California Foundation for Independent Living Centers, lobby group TechNet, and trade association TechAmerica.

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