Chapter 17H, Chapter 17H

This article may be cited as the “Fully Autonomous Vehicle Act”.

Before operating a fully autonomous motor vehicle on public roads in this state without a human driver, a person shall submit proof of financial responsibility satisfactory to the Department of Motor Vehicles that the fully autonomous vehicle is covered by insurance or proof of s…

(a) Unless otherwise provided in this article and notwithstanding any other provision of this code, fully autonomous vehicles and automated driving systems are governed exclusively by this article. The Department of Transportation is the sole and exclusive state agency that may i…

(a) General rule. The department shall be the lead state agency on fully autonomous vehicle platooning under this section. (b) Platoon restrictions. A platoon shall observe the following restrictions: (1) A maximum of three vehicles shall be in a platoon; (2) Vehicles in a platoo…

Unless expressly stated in this section, fully autonomous vehicles, whether traveling individually or in a platoon, are not exempt from any other laws or rules applicable to the ownership and operation of any non-fully autonomous vehicle in this state.

In the event of a crash: (1) The fully autonomous vehicle shall remain at the scene of the accident when required by State law consistent with its capability under §17H-1-5; and (2) The owner of the highly automated motor vehicle, or a person on behalf of the vehicle owner, shall…

A fully autonomous vehicle that is designed to be operated exclusively by an ADS for all trips is not subject to motor vehicle equipment laws or rules of this state that: (1) Relate to or support motor vehicle operation by a human driver seated in the vehicle; and (2) Are not rel…

The Legislature finds that continuing advances in technology have improved and are expected to continue to improve the safety and operation of fully autonomous vehicles such that these vehicles should be legally permitted to be operated in West Virginia pursuant to the provisions…

The following words and phrases when used in this article shall have, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the meanings given to them in this section. “Automated driving system” or “ADS” means the hardware and software that are collectively capable of performing the en…

Nothing in this article shall be construed to: (1) Prohibit a human driver from operating a fully autonomous vehicle to control all or part of the DDT; (2) Prohibit a fully autonomous vehicle from operating without a human driver; or (3) Prohibit a person from operating a vehicle…

(a) A person may operate a fully autonomous vehicle on the public roads of this state without a human driver provided that the ADS is engaged and the vehicle meets the following conditions: (1) If a failure of the ADS occurs which renders the system unable to perform the entire d…

(a) A person may operate a motor vehicle equipped with an ADS capable of performing the entire dynamic driving task (DDT) if: (1) The ADS will issue a request to intervene whenever the ADS is not capable of performing the entire DDT, with the expectation that the person will resp…

(a) A fully autonomous vehicle that is also a commercial vehicle under West Virginia law may operate pursuant to state laws governing the operation of commercial motor vehicles, except that any provision that by its nature reasonably applies only to a human driver does not apply …

An on-demand autonomous motor vehicle network shall be permitted to operate pursuant to State laws governing the operation of transportation network companies, taxis, or any other ground transportation for-hire of passengers, with the exception that any provision of such laws tha…

(a) When an automated driving system (ADS) installed on a motor vehicle is engaged: (1) The ADS is considered the driver or operator for the purpose of assessing compliance with applicable traffic or motor vehicle laws and shall be considered to satisfy electronically all physica…