Legal Implications of Self-Driving Cars in India- A Comparative Study with the USA and China

Ayush Kumar Singh,

Netaji Subhash University, Jamshedpur

“Future is already here, it's just, not evenly distributed”

~William Gibson

Introduction 

This quote is accurately applicable in the case of autonomous vehicles. Now self-driving cars are no more science fiction fantasy, it's already there, it's just a matter of time this technology will be democratized. Every new technology goes through this cycle. This cycle is the same as 5 stages of grief given by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. These 5 stages are as follows

1. Denial - When new technologies come people deny that it will not catch up, it's an impossible idea, it's bogus, so on and so forth.

2. Anger- After denial the next stage is anger, after a certain point when technology starts gaining traction traditionalists start opposing it feeling like it's being forced upon them.

3. Bargaining-Now when denial and anger fail finally the bargaining starts that old's ways and new technology can go hand in hand.

4. Depression- After bargaining then comes depression because the technology got adopted by certain sections of the society and they gain upper hand over others.

5. Acceptance/democratization- Then finally comes acceptance when technology gets democratized.

Every new technology goes through this cycle be it computers, smartphones etc, same will be the case with autonomous vehicles. So we can't deny the fact that in automobile sector this is a new revolution, so we can't deny this we have to accept it with a pinch of salt, we have to fix the liability, in cases of accident and also we can to see other legal implications of autonomous vehicles on road and what is the position of countries like USA and China in this particular matter.

USA legal position on Autonomous vehicles

The USA is one of the early adopters of autonomous vehicles but ironically it's substantially behind in crafting legal regulations in this regard. Although there is no nationwide law, several individual states passed their own regulations. Even though there are no specific nationwide regulations to regulate autonomous vehicles, in 2016 USA passed interim guidelines related to Autonomous vehicles that is NHTSA federal autonomous Vehicle policy. These policies are about setting the liability in cases of autonomous vehicles traditionally liability was on a driver and an owner of the car. But who will be liable in cases of accidents by autonomous vehicles, it will be manufacturers and testing agencies? The legal frameworks must evolve with evolving technology and it's evolving to strike a balance between innovation and safety. These policies focus on setting accountability on autonomous vehicles manufacturers. These steps are crucial to navigate the opportunities and challenges in the rapidly evolving autonomous vehicle sector. We need to adapt to these changes. Denial and anger is not a way out, we need a clear bargain between growth and safety. So the USA is trying well and there is a lot more to be done and we need to learn from them and must follow the trend of innovation.

China legal position on Autonomous vehicles

China is way more forward than the USA in adopting legal framework, it has done significant developments. This reflects China's forward thinking to lead in the autonomous vehicle sector. The approach of China is proactive and coordinated efforts to have a robust legal framework. In 2016 the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) imposed a moratorium on AV testing and driving on public roads. This decision came after a fatal accident happened in the USA . This shows that safety is a first priority, then in 2018 China made new rules for testing this also shows safety with innovation. So all these developed countries are adopting this revolutionary technology. We must learn from all these Countries.

Conclusion 

Presently this autonomous vehicle phenomenon has not yet started in India today till now there are no regulations in India to regulate the autonomous vehicle industry. It is saddening that India is way behind its global competitors in this particular sector. The Indian government is giving the lame reason that drivers will lose their jobs but the reality is that it will open new avenues. Another problem is our transport infrastructure is not yet ready for autonomous vehicles. However the draft motor vehicle (amendment) act 2017 provides for testing but we have a long way to go. We need to catch up with the USA and China and other countries too like Canada, UK, Germany etc have taken great steps towards development of AV and its regulatory framework. To rest my case I would like to quote Sophocles “nothing vast enters human life without a curse”. So definitely there are problems but we must try to mitigate those problems and adapt to the change because having a traditionalist approach is dangerous for our growth on a global level. So we must follow a balanced approach that's growth with safety in this particular issue.