Biden’s NHTSA Chief Departure Reignites Traffic Safety Worries

The US auto safety agency is losing its top official after just three months in the job, a blow as it seeks to quell rising traffic deaths and concern over autonomous vehicles.

Steven Cliff, head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, will leave to be the California Air Resources Board’s next executive director starting Sept. 12. The agency that regulates auto safety had been without a permanent administrator since 2017 until Cliff was confirmed by the Senate in late May.

Activists and lawmakers pushed for a permanent leader at the agency before Cliff was nominated — and are left ...