Edward Markey: Last News

The Washington Post.BMW, Mazda, Polestar, Rivian, Tesla, Volkswagen, and Volvo have already removed the audio feature from their electric vehicles, while Ford has announced that it will extend its phasing out to both future electric and gas-powered models.But Nissan, Toyota, and Honda have stood firm against the frequency’s forced removal while a collection of bi-partisan lawmakers in the US have drafted a bill to block carmakers from doing so.The bill would direct the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to issue regulations to mandate AM radio in new vehicles without additional charge, reports Reuters.Democratic Senator Edward Markey, one of the sponsors of the bill, said: “Carmakers shouldn’t tune out AM radio in new vehicles or put it behind a costly digital paywall.”The lawmakers argue that it undermines a federal system for delivering key public safety information to the public.The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a trade group representing major automakers, added: “Mandating AM radios in all vehicles is unnecessary. Congress has never mandated radio features in vehicles ever before.

Chris Willman Senior Music Writer and Chief Music Critic With the media sounding the alarm bell that AM radio is increasingly being dropped by auto manufacturers, a bipartisan group of members of Congress has introduced legislation that would mandate auto manufacturers keep the traditional radio band intact in new vehicles. The AM for Every Vehicle Act was introduced in both the House and Senate Wednesday. If successful, it would reverse a tide that has seen several manufacturers of electric cars, including Tesla, drop it from those vehicles — citing interference between the AM band and electric operating systems — and, more alarmingly for AM radio listeners, has found Ford planning to drop AM from all new cars.