NHTSA Zoox Exemption Application for Automated Driving Systems

Content

ACTION:

Request for public comment.

SUMMARY:

Zoox, Inc. (“Zoox”) has petitioned NHTSA for a temporary exemption from certain requirements in eight Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standards (FMVSS) applicable to its

     passenger car equipped with an automated driving system (ADS). Specifically, Zoox seeks exemption from portions of FMVSS No.
     103, Windshield defrosting and defogging systems; FMVSS No. 104, Windshield wiping and washing systems; FMVSS No. 108, Lamps,
     reflective devices, and associated equipment; FMVSS No. 111, Rear visibility; FMVSS No. 135, Light vehicle brake systems;
     FMVSS No. 201, Occupant protection in interior impact; FMVSS No. 205, Glazing materials; and FMVSS No. 208, Occupant crash
     protection. NHTSA is publishing this document in accordance with statutory and administrative provisions and seeks comment
     on the merits of Zoox's exemption application and on potential terms and conditions that should be applied to a temporary
     exemption if granted. After receiving and considering public comments, NHTSA will make a decision on the merits of the application
     and will publish a notice in the 
     Federal Register
     setting forth NHTSA's reasoning for either granting or denying the petition.

DATES:

Comments must be received on or before April 10, 2026.

ADDRESSES:

You may submit comments to the docket number identified in the heading of this document by any of the following methods:

• Electronic Submissions: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.

• Fax: 202-493-2251.

• Mail or Hand Delivery: Docket Management, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Suite W58-213, Washington,
DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except on Federal holidays. To be sure someone is there to help
you, please call (202) 366-9826 or (202) 366-9317 before coming.

Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and docket number. Note that all comments received will be posted without change
to https://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information provided. Please see the Privacy Act discussion below. NHTSA will consider all comments
received before the close of business on the comment closing date indicated above. To the extent possible, NHTSA will also
consider comments filed after the closing date.

Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or comments received, go to https://www.regulations.gov/docket/NHTSA-2025-0523 at any time or to 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m.
and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays. Telephone: 202-366-9826.

Privacy Act: In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 553(c), DOT solicits comments from the public to inform its rulemaking process. DOT posts these
comments, without edit, to www.regulations.gov, as described in the system of records notice, DOT/ALL-14 FDMS, accessible through www.dot.gov/privacy. In order to facilitate comment tracking and response, we encourage commenters to provide their name, or the name of their
organization; however, submission of names is completely optional. Whether or not commenters identify themselves, all timely
comments will be fully considered. If you wish to provide comments containing proprietary or confidential information, please
contact the agency for alternate submission instructions.

Confidential Business Information: If you wish to submit any information under a claim of confidentiality, you must submit your request directly to NHTSA's Office
of the Chief Counsel. Requests for confidentiality are governed by 49 CFR part 512. If you claim that any of the information
or documents provided to the Agency constitute confidential business information within the meaning of 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4),
or are protected from disclosure pursuant to 18 U.S.C. 1905, you must submit supporting information together with the materials
that are the subject of the confidentiality request, in accordance with part 512, to the Office of the Chief Counsel. Your
request must include a cover letter setting forth the information specified in our confidential business information regulation
(49 CFR 512.8) and a certificate, pursuant to § 512.4(b) and part 512, appendix A. NHTSA is currently treating electronic
submission as an acceptable method for submitting confidential business information to the Agency under part 512. Please do
not send a hardcopy of a request for confidential treatment to NHTSA's headquarters. The request should be sent to Dan Rabinovitz
in the Office of the Chief Counsel at Daniel.Rabinovitz@dot.gov or you may contact him for a secure file transfer link. Manufacturers or any companies that already have a Confidential Business
Information (CBI) Portal account or an Enterprise Account with NHTSA should use the CBI Portal for their submission. If you
submit a CBI request, please also email a courtesy copy of the request to Callie Roach, Office of the Chief Counsel at callie.roach@dot.gov. In addition, you should submit a copy, from which you have deleted the claimed confidential business information, to the Docket
at the address given above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For legal issues: Callie Roach, Office of the Chief Counsel at callie.roach@dot.gov. For technical issues: Emily Shull, Rulemaking Office of Automation Safety at Emily.Shull@dot.gov; Fax: (202) 366-7002. Mailing address: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington,
DC 20590.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction

II. Authority and Procedures for Temporary Exemption

III. Zoox's Application

IV. Agency's Review of Zoox's Application

V. Terms

VI. Public Participation

I. Introduction

NHTSA is responsible for promulgating and enforcing Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) designed to improve motor
vehicle safety. Generally, a manufacturer may not manufacture for sale, sell, offer for sale, or introduce or deliver for
introduction into interstate commerce a vehicle that does not comply with all applicable FMVSS. (1) There are limited exceptions to this general prohibition. (2) One path permits manufacturers to petition NHTSA for an exemption for noncompliant vehicles under a specified set of statutory
bases. (3)

On August 22, 2025, Zoox submitted an application for exemption for its ADS-equipped vehicle, the “Zoox robotaxi.” Specifically,
Zoox petitioned NHTSA for a temporary exemption from portions of eight FMVSS. Zoox requests a two-year exemption for not more
than 2,500 exempted vehicles for each 12-month period covered by the exemption. Granting the temporary exemption would allow
Zoox to manufacture for sale, sell, or deploy into interstate commerce vehicles that do not comply fully with the FMVSS.

NHTSA is seeking comment on the merits of Zoox's exemption application, as supplemented by additional information provided
to NHTSA. These documents are available in the docket for this petition, available at https://www.regulations.gov/docket/NHTSA-2025-0523.

II. Authority and Procedures for Temporary Exemption

The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act (the “Safety Act”) authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to exempt
motor vehicles on a temporary basis, under specified circumstances and on terms that the Secretary considers appropriate,
from an FMVSS or bumper standard. This authority is set forth at 49 U.S.C. 30113 and has been delegated to NHTSA. (4) Section 30113 authorizes the Secretary to grant, in whole or in part, a temporary exemption to a vehicle manufacturer if the
Secretary finds that the exemption meets one of the four enumerated bases (5) and finds that the exemption is consistent with the public interest and with the objectives of the Safety Act. (6)

Zoox seeks a temporary exemption on the basis specified in 49 CFR 555.6(d) that compliance with the eight FMVSS would prevent
it from selling a motor vehicle with an overall safety level at least equal to the overall safety level of nonexempt (i.e., compliant) vehicles. (7)

NHTSA established 49 CFR part 555, Temporary Exemption from Motor Vehicle Safety and Bumper Standards, to implement the statutory provisions concerning temporary exemptions. The requirements in 49 CFR 555.5 state that the applicant
must set forth the basis of the application and the information required under 49 CFR 555.6, and the reasons why the exemption
would be in the public interest and consistent with the objectives of the Safety Act. An application submitted on the basis
that the applicant is otherwise unable to sell a vehicle whose overall level of safety is at least equal to that of a nonexempt
vehicle must include the information specified in 49 CFR 555.6(d).

III. Zoox's Application

Zoox's application provides a description of its vehicle and safety features. It discusses how specific aspects their vehicle's
design precludes compliance certification with certain aspects of specific FMVSS (e.g., the vehicle does not have a service brake pedal required by FMVSS No. 135, “Light vehicle brake systems” because the vehicle
is designed never to be operated by a human driver). The application describes requested FMVSS exemptions and explains why
Zoox believes the vehicle provides an overall safety level equivalent to a nonexempt vehicle. The application also details
the capabilities of the automated driving system, general operational procedures, and Zoox's public interest arguments. To
support its safety justification, Zoox submitted nine appendices. Following the application, NHTSA requested further information
regarding the vehicle's design, the ADS, and operations. Because Zoox sought confidential treatment of portions of its submitted
materials, redacted versions of Zoox's application, appendices, and responses to NHTSA's questions can be found in the docket. (8)

Zoox has petitioned NHTSA for a temporary exemption from certain requirements in eight FMVSS for its ADS-equipped vehicle.
Specifically, Zoox seeks exemption from portions of:

• FMVSS No. 103, “Windshield defrosting and defogging systems”
• FMVSS No. 104, “Windshield wiping and washing systems”
• FMVSS No. 108, “Lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment”
• FMVSS No. 111, “Rear visibility”
• FMVSS No. 135, “Light vehicle brake systems”
• FMVSS No. 201, “Occupant protection in interior impact”
• FMVSS No. 205, “Glazing materials” and
• FMVSS No. 208, “Occupant crash protection”

IV. Agency's Review of Zoox's Application

NHTSA has not yet made any decision on the merits of Zoox's application. NHTSA will make a decision on the merits of the application
after receiving and considering public comments to this notice, as well as any additional information that the agency receives
from Zoox.

V. Terms

Section 30113 authorizes the Secretary, NHTSA by delegation, to condition the grant of a temporary exemption “on terms [NHTSA]
considers appropriate.” (9) The agency's authority to set terms includes the ability to set terms that would ensure that the exemption is in the public
interest and allow NHTSA to oversee vehicle operation as appropriate. If NHTSA decides to grant Zoox's application, it will
carefully consider whether and what terms to establish. The terms may apply for specified lengths of time or may apply throughout
the exempted vehicles' useful life. In addition, NHTSA may condition a grant on operational terms that may be changed pursuant
to subsequent letters from NHTSA that will be made publicly available.

VI. Public Participation

A. Request for Comment and Comment Period

The agency seeks comment from the public on the merits of Zoox's petition for a temporary exemption. NHTSA is also seeking
comment on the potential types of terms the agency should set if the agency decides to grant the petition. NHTSA is providing
a 30-day comment period. After considering public comments and other available information, NHTSA will publish a notice of
final action on the petition in the
Federal Register
.

B. Instructions for Submitting Comments

How long do I have to submit comments?

Please see
DATES
section at the beginning of this document.

How do I prepare and submit comments?

• Your comments must be written in English.
• To ensure that your comments are correctly filed in the Docket, please include the Docket Number shown at the beginning of this document in your comments. • If you are submitting comments electronically as a PDF (Adobe) File, NHTSA asks that the documents be submitted using the Optical Character Recognition (OCR) process, thus allowing NHTSA to search and copy certain portions of your submissions. Comments may be submitted to the docket electronically by logging onto the Docket Management System website at http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.

• You may also submit two copies of your comments, including the attachments, to Docket Management at the address given above
under
ADDRESSES
.

Please note that pursuant to the Data Quality Act, in order for substantive data to be relied upon and used by the agency,
it must meet the information quality standards set forth in the OMB and DOT Data Quality Act guidelines. Accordingly, we encourage
you to consult the guidelines in preparing your comments. OMB's guidelines may be accessed at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/fedreg/reproducible.html. DOT's guidelines may be accessed at http://www.bts.gov/programs/statistical_policy_and_research/data_quality_guidelines.

Will the Agency consider late comments?

We will consider all comments that Docket Management receives before the close of business on the comment closing date indicated
above under
DATES
. To the extent possible, we will also consider comments that Docket Management receives after that date.

How can I read the comments submitted by other people?

You may see the comments on the internet. To read the comments on the internet, go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions for accessing the dockets.

Please note that, even after the comment closing date, we will continue to file relevant information in the Docket as it becomes
available. Further, some people may submit late comments. Accordingly, we recommend that you periodically check the Docket
for new material.

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30113 and 30166; delegation of authority at 49 CFR 1.95.

Jonathan Morrison, Administrator. [FR Doc. 2026-04730 Filed 3-10-26; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 4910-59-P

Footnotes

(1) 49 U.S.C. 30112(a)(1).

(2) 49 U.S.C. 30112(b); 49 U.S.C. 30113; 49 U.S.C. 30114.

(3) 49 U.S.C. 30113.

(4) 49 CFR 1.95.

(5) 49 U.S.C. 30113(b)(3).

(6) 49 U.S.C. 30113(b)(3)(A).

(7) 49 U.S.C. 30113(b)(3)(B)(iv).

(8) NHTSA-2025-0523.

(9) 49 U.S.C. 30113(b)(1) (delegation of authority at 49 CFR 1.95).

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