The State Attorney General, in consultation with New Jersey’s Transportation Commissioner, would be required to create a training course to prepare law enforcement to interact with autonomous vehicles under a bill (A-4977) approved Monday by the Assembly Law and Public Safety Committee. The legislation’s sponsors, Assembly Democrats Carol Murphy (D-Burlington), Annette Quijano (D-Union) and Raj Mukherji (D-Hudson) released the following joint statement:
“It’s currently illegal to test or operate an autonomous vehicle on public highways in New Jersey, but we know the day is coming when driverless cars will become more and more common. We must ensure law enforcement is prepared in emergency and traffic stop situations when that day comes.
“We know that in other states where autonomous vehicles are already being used, police have struggled with how to interact with the technology.
“This bill is preparing our state for a safer future by requiring the Attorney General to establish a training course that new law enforcement officers would be required to complete before being appointed to permanent status.
“Technology will always evolve and to keep up with it, our laws must too.”