It would make sense to scale it to what one car makes the company, since you’re fining them for a violation done by one car.
With your suggestion, it would be a lot easier and cheaper for the state to simply ban Waymo, since that would be the result.
I can only speak for German law: When a car breaking a traffic law is identified (by number plate), the registered owner of the car gets sent a letter notifying them and ordering them to identify the driver.
If the owner can’t or won’t name the driver, the owner has to pay the fine. The law assumes that either you let someone drive the car, then you must know who it was, or at least be able to help the feds in their investigation. Or the car was stolen, but then it was on you to report the theft immediately.
It does get trickier when it’s a criminal case, cause in Vaymo’s case, it’s difficult to determine who is personally responsible. This is where new laws are required. One possibility would be looking to the data privacy laws: Here, every affected company needs to appoint someone responsible for data privacy. In case of a violation that person is personally responsible and can be punished, including prison time, if they haven’t done their due dilligence.
So for self-driving cars, every company would need to have a “traffic safety director” who is legally required to be in the loop for all decisions regarding traffic safety, has to report any legal violations to their superiors and the public, and is personally responsible for ongoing gross violations. (It’s a very well-paying job.)
Per infraction. That’ll put a cost on violating traffic laws and incentivize them to fix their software in order to cut cost.
And if you can prove intent (they were aware of a dangerous bug but chose not to fix it), then ground the fleet until it’s fixed and/or punish whoever’s ultimately responsible, personally.
one passed a stopped school bus that was unloading kids in Atlanta. That’s a violation that normally garners $1,000 fine and a court hearing, but nothing was issued to the company.
“These cars don’t have a driver, so we’re really going to have to rethink who’s responsible,” said Georgia state Representative Clint Crowe to Atlanta news station, KGW8.
No? The company has a mail address. Send them the notice and summons to court, just like you would for the owner of a regular vehicle.
I was only fined once in my life for speeding (going 5km/h over the limit on a downhill), since I always respect the speed limit.
Would it make sense to multiply my fine by the average number of violations other people commit in their lives?