This bill passed the House and the Senate with a unanimous vote.
Autonomous vehicles that can deliver you food or other items may soon be coming to a sidewalk near you. Several states have legalized these slow-moving sidewalk-traversing vehicles, and Utah might be next.
Representative Stuart Barlow has sponsored House Bill 217 to establish a legal framework by which these devices can operate in Utah. Driving over sidewalks and crosswalks, the devices will be compliant with the law so long as the following criteria are met:
- the device complies with local ordinances, if any, established by the local highway authority governing where the device is operated;
- an operator must be actively monitoring the device (to assume control and direct it should the device fail to reach its destination autonomously);
- the device owner must maintain liability coverage; and
- the device must have identification, brakes, and a light.
