Two Senate Democrats wrote to a pair of federal agencies this week urging them to come up with recommendations for improving self-driving automobile software following a fatal crash involving a Tesla in Texas.<\/p>\n
Sens.\u00a0Ed Markey\u00a0(D-Mass.) and\u00a0Richard Blumenthal\u00a0(D-Conn.) wrote in a letter to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the National Transportation Safety Board that the agencies should develop “recommendations for how automated driving and driving assistance systems like Tesla\u2019s Autopilot can be improved,” and warned that fatal crashes involving self-driving car software are becoming a “pattern.”<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile automated driving and driver assistance systems \u2014 like the Autopilot feature on Tesla cars \u2014 can help prevent injurious and fatal accidents, they must be implemented strategically and safely,\u201d reads the letter, obtained by The Hill.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most recent Tesla crash is the latest in a rash of accidents \u2014 the 28th \u2014 that NHTSA is investigating involving a Tesla car. We fear safety concerns involving these vehicles are becoming a pattern, which is incredibly worrisome and deserves your undivided attention,” it continues.<\/p>\n