• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to secondary sidebar
  • About
    • Contact
    • Privacy
    • Terms of use
  • Advertise
    • Advertising
    • Case studies
    • Design
    • Email marketing
    • Features list
    • Lead generation
    • Magazine
    • Press releases
    • Publishing
    • Sponsor an article
    • Webcasting
    • Webinars
    • White papers
    • Writing
  • Subscribe to Newsletter

Robotics & Automation News

Where Innovation Meets Imagination

  • Home
  • News
  • Features
  • Editorial Sections A-Z
    • Agriculture
    • Aircraft
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Automation
    • Autonomous Vehicles
    • Business
    • Computing
    • Construction
    • Culture
    • Design
    • Drones
    • Economy
    • Energy
    • Engineering
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Humanoids
    • Industrial robots
    • Industry
    • Infrastructure
    • Investments
    • Logistics
    • Manufacturing
    • Marine
    • Material handling
    • Materials
    • Mining
    • Promoted
    • Research
    • Robotics
    • Science
    • Sensors
    • Service robots
    • Software
    • Space
    • Technology
    • Transportation
    • Warehouse robots
    • Wearables
  • Press releases
  • Events
elaine-chao

Transport secretary Elaine Chao needs to update DoT policy, says automation expert

March 2, 2017 by Sam Francis

Newly appointed US transport secretary Elaine Chao is being asked to go out and “do better” than the previous administration and “explain in plain language” her recipe for success.  

In particular, Chao is being asked to give the testing and regulation of autonomous cars a national framework rather than allow the technology to be introduced in a haphazard way, with each state making its own rules as it goes along.

This is the suggestion of many experts from the world of business and academia, including one particularly outspoken expert Timothy Carone, an associate teaching professor in the Department of IT, Analytics, and Operations in the University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business. 

Carone says the transport secretary needs to chow down on the regulations, and see things from the consumers’ point of view, but perhaps more importantly, she needs to say chao to the attitude which is preventing the greater supervision of how the technology is developing.

Carone balanced his observations of Department of Transport policy by welcoming the transport secretary’s decision to conduct a wholesale review of the autonomous car sector.

Chao recently announced she was reviewing the self-driving vehicle guidance issued by the Obama administration, and has shown she appreciates how attractive the technology must seem to some sectors of industry and to the public, but says she is concerned people might be getting too rosy a picture – there are potential negative impacts on employment, which was her previous responsibility as labor secretary.

In one of her first public briefings as transport secretary, Chao said: “The new automated technologies have the potential of dramatically changing commercial transportation and private travel, expanding access for millions within our borders.

“Automated technology has the potential to help eliminate human error and reduce crashes and fatalities significantly.”

She added that she will also be keeping her eyes on how the technology affects sectors such as logistics, where driverless trucks are being tested and introduced. “As a former secretary of labor I’m very concerned about that,” said Chao. “We do have to transition people [into other careers] and keep that in mind.”

In a response, automation expert Carone says: “The general public and the companies involved in all aspects of developing and operating driverless cars should welcome Secretary Chao’s approach.

Tim Carone
Tim Carone, criticising government transport policy. (Photo by Barbara Johnston/University of Notre Dame)

“There is a need to explain in plain language the significant benefits of driverless cars.

“These cars are more like a Google data center than the muscle cars we all grew up with over the past decades.

“Car companies and their partners need to shape the thinking on this complex topic and should have an articulated effort to sell the benefits of driverless cars to the public now. Best to do it on a national stage rather than having to do it one state at a time.

“The Federal Automated Vehicles Policy issued in September by the Department of Transportation was an amorphous first step in a long journey. DoT published what it could because it had to publish something.

“The approach to regulating the evolution of autonomous vehicles is less about regulating car operations than it is about managing the evolution of complex software systems.

“The policy sought to provide room for innovators to evolve the technology while also punishing companies when things go wrong.

“DoT needs to do better and that appears to be the approach Secretary Chao outlined in her comments.”

A former astrophysicist, Carone specializes in data science, business intelligence, data mining, artificial intelligence and data security. He is the author of Future Automation – Changes to Lives and to Businesses.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Share this:

  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp
  • Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window) Telegram
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Pocket

Related stories you might also like…

Filed Under: News, Transportation Tagged With: automated, autonomous, car, carone, cars, chao, data, driverless, secretary, technology, transport

Primary Sidebar

Search this website

Latest articles

  • Safety standards and innovations in human-robot collaboration
  • Outrider builds ‘first-in-industry’ safety system for driverless yard operations
  • Foundation EGI raises $23 million to build ‘world’s first engineering general intelligence platform’
  • How advanced automation is transforming waste management
  • Augmentus raises $11 million to scale physical AI for complex robotic surface finishing and welding
  • GreenBot unveils autonomous system for weeding woody crop areas
  • The Rise of the Autonomous Fab Shop: Why Waterjet Cutting is Leading the Automation Revolution
  • Mendaera receives FDA clearance for handheld robotic system for ultrasound-guided needle placement
  • Prime Vision robots optimize K-Parts order picking for motorbike spares
  • Vidnoz Review: The Free AI Video Generator That’s Redefining Content Creation

Secondary Sidebar

Copyright © 2025 · News Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT