To the Editor:

Your Oct. 15 editorial “Not So Fast on Self-Driving Cars” hits the target. Manufacturers and high-tech companies want to rush sales of robot cars to recoup the billions they are investing. But there are huge unknowns in the technology, vehicle safety, driver capability, application of state laws, insurance, public acceptance and how many lives might be saved.

Seeking to persuade the public, the industry claims that these vehicles would save many lives, but no solid studies document this assertion, and trust in the manufacturers’ veracity these days is minimal.

Most concerning, manufacturers are using their lobbying might to push legislation exempting driverless cars from existing safety standards so they can be sold quickly, thus authorizing them to sell now and evaluate later. There are no requirements for electronic safety performance, protection against devastating cyberattacks, identifying cars as being driverless or collecting crash involvement data. Gradual, incremental introduction of this radical technology is the only sane route to travel.

JOAN CLAYBROOK, WASHINGTON

The writer is former administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.