– California State Makes 'Emission-Free Self-Driving Vehicles' Mandatory Following Phase-Date Ban on Sales of New Vehicles with Internal Combustion Engines –
– Will this regulation change the direction of growth ahead of the full-fledged self-driving car market development?
California, which is also famous for its environmentally friendly policies in the United States, has passed an unusual law once again after phasing out the sale of new vehicles with internal combustion engines by 2035. Not long ago, the governor signed the law, making it mandatory for all autonomous vehicles operating in California to be "zero-emission" by 2030. Due to natural disasters such as wildfires, earthquakes and typhoons that have been repeated and intensified in recent years, as well as abnormal climates around the world, California seems to be accelerating its eco-friendly steps.
Regulations related to 'emission-free self-driving cars'
The so-called 'Self-driving Vehicle Zero Emissions Act' (official name: SB 2, Autonomous vehicles: zero emissions), which was first proposed by Senator Dave Min (Democratic Party) of the California State Legislature in February this year, last September It is scheduled to take effect on January 500, 9, with the final signature of Governor Gavin Newsom on the 23rd. The goal of this law is to ban the operation of new self-driving vehicles other than zero-emission vehicles. In other words, it can be interpreted as meaning that all self-driving vehicles operating within the state must be pollution-free vehicles such as 'electric vehicles' or 'hydrogen fuel cell vehicles'.
The law adds new content to the relevant section (Section 38750) of the California Vehicle Code, which currently governs the operation of autonomous vehicles. Specifically, 'All light self-driving vehicles of model year 2031 or later and weighing less than 8,500 pounds* must be zero-emission vehicles' and 'Department of Motor Vehicle has until January 2027, 1 to enact regulations related to this Act cannot start,' and the full text of the detailed law can be found at the following link. (https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=1SB202120220)
Note*: Vehicles weighing less than 8,500 pounds (approximately 3,855 kg) are classified as light-duty vehicles according to the US Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR).
This is part of California's various measures to reduce internal combustion engine vehicles, which are a representative carbon emission source, and increase the supply of zero-emission vehicles at the same time. California already has a 'Clean Vehicle Rebate Project' administered by the state Air Resources Board that provides rebates on the purchase of new zero-emission vehicles, and a near-zero-emission of 2023 million zero-emission and low-emission vehicles by January 1, 1. ) Various programs exist to encourage zero-emission vehicle operation, such as the 'Charge Ahead California Initiative', which includes vehicle distribution targets.
Regulatory Promotion Background and Industry Response
Dave Min, who initiated the SB 500, said in an interview with TechCrunch, an online media outlet specializing in high-tech and startups in the U.S. “So far, California has set important standards for aggressive response to the climate crisis we face.” “The SB 500 is also As part of this aspiration, it is an important first step in requiring zero-emission obligations before the full-scale commercialization of autonomous vehicles.” This law's primary goal is to help accelerate the adoption of electric and zero-emission vehicles in California, as well as help create an environment for autonomous vehicle transportation services that will not have to incur the high additional costs of transitioning to zero-emission technologies in the future. It is known as a driving force background.
Elizabeth Irvin, a senior analyst at the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), a non-profit scientific organization in the United States that actively supported the law, said, “The most common types of ride-hailing* or delivery services are: As the rapid adoption of autonomous vehicles is expected in the future, it is of utmost importance that autonomous vehicles should be pollution-free.” If we take into account that when the average driver's average annual car mileage is about 1 to 8,000 km, service drivers such as Uber and Lyft drive about 2 km, which is more than double that on average. And the 'green' role of autonomous vehicles, an important potential member of the delivery industry, is also significant.
Note*: It refers to a form of transportation in which a taxi is directly called by phone or smartphone app, etc., and Uber and Lyft are the most representative examples.
It is known that nearly half of California's greenhouse gases are emitted from the transportation sector. Awareness of the need for change in the transport and transportation sector is higher than ever, and the law did not face severe opposition even during the proposition process. However, at the time of the initial proposal of the bill, the target date for entry into force was 5, five years earlier than the current standard, and not only lightweight but also some heavy duty vehicles were included in the target. However, in the course of the process, it was finished with the current standard due to various concerns about reality, and in the final stage in early September, it was passed by 2025:9 in the State Senate and 30:9 in the House of Representatives.
The SB 500 is not only science and environmental organizations, but also self-driving car companies such as 'Waymo' owned by Alphabet, the parent company of Google, and 'Cruise' owned by automobile giant GM. has received wide support from Cruise, a self-driving car company that directly supported the SB 500, is currently testing a fully self-driving taxi service in California, and is also building a large-scale EV charging hub in San Francisco, the center of the tech industry. In June, Cruise broke a major milestone when it received a driverless passenger permit from the California Public Utilities Commission, the first of its kind in the industry. Waymo, one of the leading self-driving car companies along with Cruise, also picked up some passengers (Trusted Testers) registered as testers in San Francisco from the end of August, and started more active testing and information collection.
Cruise (top row) and Waymo (bottom row), self-driving car companies for ride services
On the other hand, some expressed displeasure over the timing of the introduction of this law. Rick Merritt, an attorney with extensive automotive litigation experience, told the California Globe, “Hackability, program electricity consumption, safety concerns, and cost issues. "Despite the need for sufficient testing, the mandatory date of fermentation can make industry members hastily."
implication
This isn't the first time California's green move has been titled "first in America." In the field of transportation and transportation, there has been an unrivaled movement, especially regarding the phased ban on the sale of new cars with internal combustion engines. In May, a new 'Clean Miles Standard' was introduced, and a gradual zero-pollution ride sharing industry such as Uber and Lyft was introduced for the first time in the United States. have been made compulsory According to the regulation, which will take effect in 5, by 2023, 2030% of the total mileage driven by ride-hailing service vehicles must be zero-emission. In fact, last year Lyft said it plans to have a 90% electric platform by 2030. As such, California is famous for leading eco-friendly policies in the United States, so the implementation process and results of this SB 100 are expected to have a significant impact on other regions.
State website featuring 'Clean Miles Standard', California's key zero-emission initiative
In addition to the automobile sector, Korean companies in various technological fields related to the development of pollution-free energy such as electricity and hydrogen need to pay attention to such a move in California. As this is a regulation that has already been enacted into law and is about to go into effect, the relevant industry will need to prepare proactively as the related market is expected to respond quickly. In addition, companies related to 'autonomous driving' that want to enter the US market need to take these key regulations in mind and actively reflect them in their future development directions and strategies.
Source: California Legislative Information, Yahoo! News, TechCrunch, Engadget, Spectrum News1, California Globe, Analytics Insight, Cruise, Waymo, California Air Resources Board, and other KOTRA Los Angeles Trade Center data