Program Manager, AV Safety Policy & Programs

At Lyft, our purpose is to serve and connect. We aim to achieve this by cultivating a work environment where all team members belong and have the opportunity to thrive.

Lyft is building the safety capability for autonomous mobility. As Program Manager, AV Safety Policy & Programs, you'll own key parts of Lyft's AV Safety Management System (SMS) across all four pillars: Safety Policy, Safety Risk Management, Safety Assurance, and Safety Promotion. You'll also make sure the processes, documentation, and cross-functional machinery behind them work in practice.

This is a high-ownership role that sits at the intersection of safety policy, program design, and cross-functional process support. You'll author policy, run risk and review cadences, turn safety data into decisions, and keep the Safety Review Board (SRB) running. You'll work closely with AV partners, and you can speak credibly about AV safety with technical counterparts, senior leaders, and external partners.

Responsibilities:

• Safety Policy: Own Lyft's AV safety policy framework, safety procedures, and partner-facing governance documentation, including version control and periodic review cycles. Maintain governance charters, committee operating rhythms, and escalation protocols.
• Safety Risk Management: Run hazard identification and risk assessment for AV operations and new launches. Maintain the operational risk register and track mitigations to closure.
• Safety Assurance: Track safety performance indicators and trends, and surface emerging risks. Participate in incident and near-miss investigations and own corrective action (CAPA) tracking, so findings feed back into policy, operations, and partner work plans. Coordinate evidence and remediation for audits and certifications.
• Safety Promotion: Drive safety communications, lessons-learned documentation, and training readiness.
• Safety Review Board: Run the SRB cadence, including agendas, materials, decision records, and follow-through on action items.
• Partner Engagement: Contribute to the standards and assessment frameworks Lyft uses with AV partners, and support partners' safety assurance and risk management activities.
• Program Execution: Drive AV safety programs with safety leaders, including partners across EHS, Operations, Engineering, Legal, and others from inception through go-live. This includes safety readiness for new market launches and partner integrations.
• Experience: 4+ years supporting or managing safety management programs in a safety-critical transportation industry (AV, aviation, rail, automotive, trucking, or equivalent)
• Working knowledge of SMS principles and how they apply to AV operations
• Hands-on experience with risk assessment, incident follow-up, and corrective action tracking
• Strong technical writing, including policy, procedures, and partner- or regulator-facing materials
• Comfort with safety data, including tracking indicators, spotting trends, and presenting findings to technical and senior audiences
• Proven ability to run multi-stakeholder programs without direct authority
• Bachelor's degree in safety, engineering, policy, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience
• Nice to Have
• Familiarity with AV safety frameworks (e.g., AVSC best practices) and US AV reporting requirements
• Experience supporting robotaxi, ridehail, or fleet operations
• Experience operating in a matrixed, partner-dependent environment where safety policy must be implemented through influence rather than direct control
• Exposure to multi-market or international safety operations