The computer screen in an autonomous prototype Continental Chrysler 300C sedan, seen during an event featuring numerous self-driving cars on Capitol Hill, March 15, 2016. WASHINGTON -- Self-driving cars are more likely to hurt than help public safety because of unsolved technical issues, engineers and safety advocates told the government Friday, countering a push by innovators to speed government approval. Even a trade association for automakers cautioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at a public meeting that a slower, more deliberative approach may be needed than the agency's plan to provide its guidance for deploying the vehicles in just six months. There are risks to deviating from the government's traditional process of issuing regulations and standards, Paul Scullion, safety manager at the Association of Global Automakers, told a public meeting on self-driving cars hosted by NHTSA. Issuing new regulations takes an average of eight years, NHTSA has said.

Self-driving cars are more likely to be a threat than a boon to public safety because of unresolved technical issues, engineers and safety advocates told the government Friday, countering a push by innovators for expedited government approval. Even a trade association for automakers cautioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at a public meeting that a slower, more deliberative approach may be needed than the agency's plan to provide in six months federal guidance for deploying the vehicles on roadways. There are risks to deviating from the government's traditional process of issuing regulations and standards, Paul Scullion, safety manager at the Association of Global Automakers, told a public meeting on self-driving cars hosted by NHTSA. Issuing new regulations takes an average of eight years, NHTSA has said. "While this process is often time-consuming, these procedural safeguards are in place for valid reasons," Scullion said.