German auto supplier seeks US nod to deploy autonomous buses on US roads

A subsidiary of German auto supplier Benteler Group, HOLON, is seeking approval from U.S. auto safety regulators to deploy up to 2,500 autonomous electric buses annually on U.S. roads. The buses, designed without traditional human controls like steering wheels, pedals, or mirrors, are part of HOLON’s vision for an autonomous public transport solution.

HOLON has petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for an exemption from federal safety standards, which currently require vehicles to be equipped with manual controls. The company’s buses would operate solely through an autonomous driving system, developed in collaboration with Mobileye, an Israeli autonomous vehicle technology firm.

The petition, announced Thursday, will be open for public comment until early January. The NHTSA’s response to the request will be closely watched, as it could signal how the agency under the Biden administration plans to handle future autonomous vehicle regulations. While NHTSA has taken a cautious approach toward self-driving vehicle approvals in recent years, this petition is noteworthy given the scale of the request and the absence of traditional human controls.

In the past, other companies, including General Motors (GM) and Ford, have attempted to gain similar approvals for autonomous vehicles without steering wheels or pedals, but have faced challenges. GM, for instance, abandoned its plans to deploy the self-driving Origin vehicle, which lacked human controls, after facing regulatory uncertainty. Similarly, Ford withdrew a petition for a similar vehicle in 2023.

HOLON’s petition comes as the company moves forward with plans to assemble up to 5,000 autonomous buses per year at a new 500,000-square-foot facility in Jacksonville, Florida. The facility is expected to be completed by 2026.

In 2020, NHTSA granted a groundbreaking approval to U.S. robotics company Nuro, allowing it to deploy up to 5,000 low-speed electric delivery vehicles without human controls, marking the first regulatory step toward fully autonomous vehicles on U.S. roads.

If approved, HOLON’s autonomous buses could mark a significant milestone in the development of self-driving technology, potentially paving the way for wider deployment of fully autonomous public transport systems in the U.S.