Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi has formally requested that the Department of Transportation provide details regarding the safety of Tesla Autopilot and Full Self-Driving systems. The inquiry follows an NBC News investigation that uncovered 43 videos of drivers appearing to be asleep while their vehicles were in motion, with 17 of these incidents recorded in 2024.
The congressman set a deadline of September 30 for Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy to respond to five specific questions. These include whether the agency recognizes a systemic issue with driver inattention, the status of communications with Tesla, and data collected on driver distraction in crashes occurring since January 1, 2024.
The letter highlights ongoing federal scrutiny, specifically the NHTSA engineering analysis EA26002, which covers approximately 3,2 million Tesla vehicles. This probe, which reached the engineering analysis phase in March, has already identified nine incidents involving reduced visibility, including one fatality and one injury.
Krishnamoorthi also questioned the effectiveness of Tesla’s cabin camera monitoring system. He specifically challenged the vehicle's alert message, which tells drivers to stay focused while using FSD, arguing that the system fails to ensure active supervision and can be bypassed by users.
