US government says self-driving cars will 'save time, money and lives' and it issues its first guidelines

With firms including Tesla, Google and Audi all working on self-driving cars, it is only a matter of time before they will be hitting the streets worldwide. While there are currently roadblocks that prevent the technology from making it to market quickly, that looks set to change. Obama administration officials have previewed long-awaited guidance that attempts to bring self-driving cars to US roadways, although many of the details remain unclear. Traditional automakers, such as Audi, and tech companies have been testing self-driving prototypes on public roads for several years, with a human in the driver's seat just in case (Audi self driving vehicle pictured) Under the proposal, the federal transportation regulators, rather than states, should be in charge of regulating self-driving cars since the vehicles are essentially controlled by software, not people, administration officials said. States have historically set the rules for licensing drivers, but when the driver becomes a computer'we intend to occupy the field here,' Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said.