The Urban Institute has warned that the proliferation of autonomous vehicles in the United States needs to be met by regulations at the federal, state, and local level to ensure equity and environmental sustainability. The non-profit group, which describes its role as inspiring “effective decisions that advance fairness and enhance the well-being of people and places,” set out their position in a 78-page report published this week.

“The mobility system in the United States is unsafe, inequitable, and environmentally destructive,” the report says. “Autonomous vehicles (AVs) — self-driving cars that can travel along publicly accessible streets some or all of the time without human involvement — could help mitigate these problems, if they are implemented in a thoughtful, well-regulated manner.”

According to the group, fully autonomous vehicles would “in theory” offer a positive step for the future of transportation, pointing to the technology’s superiority over humans in areas such as avoiding crashes, reducing operating costs, and helping to mitigate against climate change by running on electricity rather than gas. The technology also opens the possibility to improve people’s access to employment, especially in communities that have faced historic disinvestment, the report says.

However, the group warns that inadequate oversight and regulation of AVs “could produce even worse inequities than those caused by the current system.”

The report’s chief concern centers on the possibility for AVs to lead to excessive vehicular miles, which would increase the pace of climate change, create urban sprawl, exacerbate segregation, and worsen public health.

To mitigate such risks, the report sets out a series of key priorities for regulating AVs. The report calls for the federal development of vehicle design standards for unconventional vehicles, such as cars without steering wheels as well as federal and state mandates to ensure AVs are as accessible as possible for people with disabilities.

The report also suggests a federal requirement to move AVs towards zero emissions, minimum standards to protect consumers and the public from over-surveillance, and local initiatives to link AV deployment with the redesign of streets to make them safer for pedestrians, particularly children.

“These problems require substantial investments and thoughtful solutions,” the report surmises. “Companies operating ride-hailing services or building AVs themselves are unlikely to subsidize the travel needs of those who most need access to opportunity. AVs will not be a silver bullet, but if regulated appropriately and rolled out thoughtfully, they could be part of the solution.”