Federal regulators have cleared the way for robotaxis to operate without manual controls like steering wheels, and brake pedals could disappear entirely within months. Amazon's Zoox became the first company to win approval to charge customers for rides in vehicles with no traditional driver controls, marking a regulatory milestone that reshapes how autonomous vehicles can be designed and deployed.

What Does a Robotaxi Without a Steering Wheel Actually Look Like?

Zoox's approved vehicles feature a distinctive design: four inward-facing seats arranged in a square, with no steering wheel, pedals, or traditional dashboard controls. The company has already been offering free rides in Las Vegas and San Francisco since last year, and riders report surprisingly positive experiences despite the unfamiliar setup. One passenger, Chloe Huu from Ann Arbor, Michigan, described her first ride as "kind of scary at first, but when I just got used to it, it's really cool and chilling. I really liked the music and how you can adjust the temperature".

Ann Arbor, Michigan

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed a rule last month that would allow robotaxis to operate without brake pedals entirely, though that proposal is still pending approval. NHTSA Administrator Jonathan Morrison explained that most vehicle safety regulations were written decades ago with the assumption that a human driver would always be present. "If you're going to be developing a standard in the 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, nobody at that time had this imagination; nobody had a crystal ball that you might have technologies that would enable the vehicle to drive itself," Morrison stated.

Why Are Safety Advocates Concerned About This Shift?

Not everyone is celebrating this regulatory green light. The Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety group raised significant concerns about Zoox's approval, arguing that the company failed to provide detailed evidence proving its vehicles could operate safely on public roads. Peter Kurdock, general counsel for the Advocates group, emphasized the lack of supporting data: "Lots of promises, lots of glossy language, lots of 'We believe, we think we'll do this.' Yet there really was no data behind the promises, and that's really concerning to us".

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has also flagged a broader problem with how autonomous vehicle safety is currently measured. Most companies don't report how many miles their autonomous vehicles drove, making it impossible to calculate a meaningful crash rate. Additionally, there is no clear standard for which incidents must be reported, so autonomous vehicle companies end up reporting far more minor incidents than human drivers, who typically only report crashes involving significant damage or injuries.

How Is Waymo Positioned in This Regulatory Shift?

Waymo, owned by Google's parent company Alphabet, remains the industry leader with operations already established in multiple cities. However, the regulatory approval of steering-wheel-free vehicles creates new competitive pressure. Zoox and Tesla are both working to catch up to Waymo's market position, and this approval gives Zoox a significant design advantage.

Amazon, which acquired Zoox for $1.2 billion, is betting heavily on this technology. Initially, Zoox will be allowed to deploy up to 2,500 vehicles without steering wheels over the next two years as it proves the technology is safe. The company has already logged more than half a million rides across its free ride programs. Amazon hopes to eventually produce as many as 10,000 robotaxis per year at a plant near Silicon Valley.

What Happens Next in the Robotaxi Regulatory Race?

NHTSA's approach reflects a balancing act between innovation and safety oversight. Morrison acknowledged that autonomous vehicles do offer genuine safety benefits, such as never driving distracted or impaired like human drivers do. However, he also noted that robotaxis have experienced some concerning behaviors, including stopping in the middle of the road, struggling to exit parking lots, passing school buses unsafely, and interfering with first responders. "Sometimes we have seen unsafe behaviors, and we jump on that really quickly again. That's our job at NHTSA," Morrison said.

Morrison

The regulatory framework is evolving rapidly to match the technology. Morrison expressed cautious optimism about the industry's future: "By and large we're really excited about the promise of this technology and we want to see that promise fulfilled".

Morrison

Steps Regulators Are Taking to Ensure Autonomous Vehicle Safety

• Incident Reporting Requirements: NHTSA is establishing clearer standards for which incidents autonomous vehicle companies must report to federal regulators, moving beyond the current inconsistent reporting practices.
• Phased Deployment Limits: Companies like Zoox face deployment caps during their approval period, allowing regulators to monitor safety data before permitting wider expansion.
• Design Standard Updates: Federal regulators are modernizing vehicle safety standards written in the 1970s and 1980s to account for vehicles without steering wheels, brake pedals, or traditional driver controls.
• Rapid Response Investigations: NHTSA has committed to investigating unsafe behaviors quickly, including incidents involving school buses and emergency responders.

The approval of steering-wheel-free robotaxis represents a watershed moment for autonomous vehicle regulation, but it also exposes gaps in how the industry measures and reports safety. As Waymo faces new competitors with innovative vehicle designs, the real test will be whether regulators can keep pace with the technology while ensuring public safety.