看守红色和琥珀色灯光，自动驾驶车辆可能很快会为美国道路带来另一种颜色。
Look out, red and amber lights. Autonomous vehicles may soon bring another color to America’s roads.
美国汽车安全监管机构提议为识别无人驾驶车辆而设立新的青色外部灯光类别。根据美国国家公路交通安全管理局（NHTSA）在周五公开的提案，配备自动驾驶系统的车辆将在前、侧和后安装一盏或两盏绿蓝色灯光，且距离地面至少15英寸。
US auto safety regulators proposed a new category of cyan exterior lamps to identify driverless vehicles to other road users. One or two of the green-blue lights would be placed on the front, sides and rear of vehicles equipped with automated driving systems, at least 15 inches above the ground, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration proposal made public on Friday.
这些新灯光将是可选的，标志着汽车外部灯光颜色范围的转变——此前数十年来仅限于红色刹车信号、琥珀色转向信号和白色大灯。增加青色外部灯光旨在帮助执法人员和其他道路使用者区分自动驾驶汽车与由人类驾驶的车辆。
The new lights, which would be optional, would mark a shift from the limited color palette of passenger-vehicle exterior lights, which for decades have been confined to red brake signals, amber turn indicators and white headlamps. Adding a new category of cyan exterior lights aims to help law enforcement and other road users distinguish self-driving cars from vehicles operated by humans.
这是NHTSA更广泛推动的部分，旨在消除自主驾驶技术问世前制定的美国汽车安全标准所造成的意外障碍。例如，该机构在六月提议允许车辆制造商在仅由自动驾驶系统操作的车辆中移除刹车踏板，若采纳该提案将为特斯拉公司的Cybercab机器人出租车消除潜在的监管障碍。
It’s part of a broader push by NHTSA to remove unintended barriers to autonomous vehicles posed by US auto safety standards, many of which were developed long before the advent of self-driving technology. For example, the agency in June proposed allowing automakers to remove the brake pedal in vehicles designed to be operated exclusively by an automated driving system. If adopted, the change that would clear a potential regulatory hurdle for Tesla Inc.’s Cybercab robotaxi.
为自动驾驶车辆制定灯光标准有助于确保车辆识别一致性，避免出现因标准不一而导致的混乱或分散其他驾驶者注意力的局面，NHTSA表示。
Creating standards for autonomous vehicle lights would help ensure the cars are identified consistently, avoiding a patchwork of differing approaches that could confuse or distract other drivers, NHTSA said.
该机构目前正征求公众意见。此类提案通常需要数月或更长时间才能最终确定。
The agency is now seeking public comment on the latest changes. It often takes several months or more for such proposals to be finalized.