U.S. extends public input on GM, Ford self-driving petitions

A Cruise self-driving car, which is owned by General Motors Corp, is seen outside the company’s headquarters in San Francisco where it does most of its testing, in California, U.S., September 26, 2018. Picture taken on September 26, 2018. REUTERS/Heather Somerville/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. auto safety regulators will extend a deadline for public input on General Motors and Ford Motor petitions seeking to deploy a limited number of self-driving vehicles without human controls like steering wheels and brake pedals.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on Thursday made the 30-day extension of the public comment on the automaker requests after cities like San Francisco and Oakland, California, state transportation agencies, the National Association of City Transportation Officials and others sought further time to analyze the exemption requests.