The NTSB published the results of its investigation of the 2018 Tesla car accident

The National Transport and Safety Broad (NTSB) held a public board meeting during which it published the results of its investigation of the crash of Tesla car in California on March 23, 2018. According to the investigation, the accident was the result of the following: Tesla “Autopilot” system’s limitations, and its ineffective monitoring of driver engagement, the driver’s overreliance on the “Autopilot”, and the driver’s distraction – likely from a cell phone game application. Also, the NTSB determined that the systemic problems with the California Department of Transportation’s repair of traffic safety hardware and the California Highway Patrol’s failure to report the damage to a crash attenuator led to the car striking a damaged and nonoperational crash attenuator, which contributed to the driver’s injuries. Seven safety issues were identified: driver distraction, risk mitigation about monitoring driver engagement, risk assessment relating to the operating conditions under which a driving automation system is designed to function, limitations of collision avoidance systems, insufficient federal oversight of partial driving automation systems, and the need for event data recording requirements for driving automation systems highway infrastructure issues. To address these issues the NTSB made the following safety recommendations: (1) expanding National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s New Car Assessment Program testing of forward collision avoidance system performance; (2) evaluating Tesla “Autopilot” vehicles to determine if the system’s operating limitations pose an unreasonable risk to safety; (3) developing standards for driver monitoring systems; (4) reviewing and revising distracted driving initiatives to increase employers’ awareness of the need for cell phone policies prohibiting portable electronic device use while driving; (5) modifying enforcement strategies for employers who fail to address the hazards of distracted driving; (6) developing a distracted driving lock-out mechanism that will automatically disable any driver-distracting functions when a vehicle is in motion and (7) establishing policy that bans nonemergency use of portable electronic devices while driving company vehicles.