Uber replies California DMV in self-driving car spat

Uber Technolgies Inc once again defied an order by California regulators that the ride-services company request for a permit to test self-driving cars, setting up a possible legal fight.

Uber stated its self-driving cars, unveiled to the public on Wednesday, would stay on the road, and repeated its defiance of an order from the California Department of Motor Automobiles to “cease” operations.

” We respectfully disagree with the California Department of Motor Vehicles legal interpretation of today’s autonomous regulations,” Anthony Levandowski, vice president of Uber’s Advanced Technologies Group, stated on a call with press reporters.

Uber’s self-driving cars – regardless of their name – are not capable of driving ‘without … active physical control or monitoring,’ as California law specifies self-driving automobiles, Levandowski stated.

The California DMV requires that firms testing autonomous automobiles request and get a permit. Regulations also require that makers supply the DMV with accident reports.

Levandowski rejected the idea that Uber was attempting to skirt the accident disclosures.

“We think that’s an extremely important part of building trust and understanding,” he stated. “The problem is that (the policy) does not apply to us.”

Another 20 companies testing self-driving vehicles, consisting of Alphabet’s Google, Tesla Motors and Ford Motor, have acquired a DMV authorization for 130 test vehicles. Regardless of having its cars on the road for over a month, Uber has not.