NHTSA Proposes Cyan Lights and Drops Interior Switch Rules for Robotaxis

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed updates to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 108 to establish a national standard for optional cyan-colored external marker lights on autonomous vehicles. The blue-green lighting is designed to signal to law enforcement and other road users when an automated driving system is operating the vehicle without conflicting with existing red, amber, white, or emergency flashing lights. The proposed rules apply across robotaxi operators and automakers including Waymo, Zoox, Nuro, General Motors, and Mercedes-Benz, following earlier state-level approval for Mercedes-Benz to use turquoise lights on its Level 3 Drive Pilot cars before the automaker scrapped that system for a Level 2++ setup. NHTSA also proposed eliminating interior manual control mandates for vehicles without human drivers—such as physical hazard switches, manual beam shifters, and turn levers—while updating the 12.8-volt testing standard for modern LED architectures. The rulemaking arrives alongside a Department of Transportation push to streamline autonomous vehicle deployment, even as NHTSA opened an audit query last month into the Tesla Cybercab over its lack of sideview mirrors, pedals, and a steering wheel. "to clearly and consistently signal to law enforcement and other road users when an automated driving system is operating the vehicle." — National Highway Traffic Safety Administration