This bill, the Shared Autonomous Mobility Act of 2026, changes parts of title 49 of the U.S. Code to support the deployment and purchase of technology for new autonomous shared mobility vehicles.
Key changes include definitions for a "covered shared mobility vehicle" (a new bus model with an automated driving system) and "automated driving system" (SAE level 3, 4, or 5). The bill creates a new Accelerating Innovative Mobility Grant Program (section 5341) that lets the Secretary of Transportation award competitive grants to eligible recipients to speed up deployment of these vehicles. The program may fund vehicle and equipment purchases, software (including automated driving software and monitoring software), and software updates. The federal share of project costs may be up to 80 percent and nonfederal shares may be provided in-kind. The bill also amends several existing transit and infrastructure grant programs to explicitly allow the acquisition or licensing of such software.
The bill requires the Department to maintain testing facilities for new bus models and to establish at least one facility specifically for testing covered shared mobility vehicles by January 1, 2027, at sites where substantial road-based validation testing of automated-driving vehicles occurs. It directs the Secretary to keep a bus model scoring system with a pass/fail standard and to issue or update a final rule on testing requirements within 180 days of enactment. The bill also updates the definition of rolling stock to include buses, vans, cars, and related automated-driving and monitoring software and updates.
No publicly available information.
No publicly available information.