Google's self-driving cars move closer to reality

A potential landmark decision from the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) could see autonomous cars without traditional controls allowed to take to America's roads without a human driver.

In a letter from the NHTSA to Chris Urmson, the head of Google's ambitious self-driving car project, the organisation accepted that "If no human occupant of the vehicle can actually drive the vehicle, it is more reasonable to identify the driver as whatever (as opposed to whoever) is doing the driving," it said.

"In this instance, an item of motor vehicle equipment, the Self-Driving System, is actually driving the vehicle."

The letter, made public on Wednesday, was in response to Google asking the NHTSA to reconsider its stance on a car without a driver being un-roadworthy because its latest generation self-driving cars are devoid of any conditional controls - ie everyone travelling inside them is be definition a passenger.