The Texas Senate has approved safety standards for self-driving cars, hoping to better regulate technology that's already been tested on the streets of the state capital.
A bill by Sen. Kelly Hancock, a North Richland Hills Republican, mandates that autonomous vehicles comply with national traffic codes. It also allows the state to supersede any local regulations Texas communities have made to accommodate self-driving cars.
Hancock's measure was approved 31-0 on Tuesday, and now speeds to the state House.
Google has tested self-driving cars in Austin, where city officials embraced technology that has in the past been slowed somewhat by regulations in the company's home state of California.
Hancock's bill also requires self-driving cars to be equipped with data-recording systems and to stop and "notify the proper authorities" after crashes.
