AMERICA DRIVES Act

This legislation aims to preempt state laws that mandate a human occupant in certain automated driving systems (ADS)-equipped commercial motor vehicles. It explicitly permits Level 4 or Level 5 ADS-equipped commercial motor vehicles to operate in interstate commerce without a human driver, whether onboard or remotely. The Secretary of Transportation is directed to issue necessary regulations to implement this provision. The bill mandates the Secretary of Transportation to streamline existing regulations by September 30, 2027, to integrate ADS into commercial vehicle operations. This involves amending rules like hours of service and drug testing to clarify their non-applicability to driverless ADS-equipped vehicles, and defining "remote driver" and "remote assistance." It also prohibits regulations that unduly burden or discriminate against ADS-equipped vehicles, while excluding automated driving system technologies from vehicle width calculations. Additionally, the bill directs that specific federal regulations concerning warning devices be interpreted to include cab-mounted warning beacons.