With the rapid development of self-driving car technology, it feels like we’re getting closer to a future where fully autonomous vehicles might become a normal part of everyday life. Companies like Tesla, Waymo, and others are already testing these cars on public roads, and some cities are even allowing them in limited capacities.
But it got me thinking: are we ready for this to be the norm everywhere?
On one hand, these vehicles have the potential to reduce accidents caused by human error, make transportation more efficient, and even provide mobility to people who can’t drive. On the other hand, there are concerns about how these cars handle unexpected situations, cybersecurity risks, and whether the technology is reliable enough to replace human drivers entirely.
Do you think fully self-driving cars should be allowed everywhere now, or should there be stricter safety checks and regulations before they’re widely adopted?
Although I would buy a truly self driving car in a heartbeat, I don’t know of anyone even testing them in snow or on ice. I do not expect them in my lifetime.
My diminishing elesight will get me off the road before I am ready.
This just happened earlier this month (I think), I mainly just saw the video and looked it up… No claim about it’s truth or not…
We have come a LONG ways, but still have a long ways to go yet… I don’t think I will see it in my lifetime, not sure my kids will ether… But again I could be wayyy off… lol
Disclaimer, just my uneducated no nothing about the subject, my fix for everything computer related is to unplug it and reboot it and hope for the best, but had to voice my opinion anyway cause I have no life, redneck view on the subject…
At this point, I’d say WE as passengers might be ready, but the cars are not. Weather is still an issue to be solved. There are 4 cities in the US and many more in China where they are operating commercially.
No. The safety is being addressed by the companies running the trials… Waymo is owned by Google (Alphabet) and has very deep pockets to sue if an accident happens. That kind of liability makes companies more careful.
The current traffic laws apply equally to Robo-taxis but there are still questions of liability and responsibility if an accident occurs. THAT is why I doubt we’ll see private ownership of fully autonomous cars. If it crashes, you can’t charge the driver… they are not driving!
Ok, so you won’t OWN your Robo-taxi… How would the members of the forum feel about eliminating your personal transportation for a Robo-taxi? Considering the filthy habits of many of our fellow humans and the fact there is NO cabbie to clean up after these pigs exit the Robo-taxi, would that be acceptable to the forum members?
I, for one, want my personal transportation to BE “personal”.
Fully autonomous vehicles aren’t available yet. And when they are ready, then I see no reason not to.
SAE has defined a standard for autonomous vehicles. There are 6 different levels of achievement. At best we’ve reached level 2. In some very restricted areas, some have reached a level 3. There should be no fully autonomous vehicles on the road that don’t meet these standards. Each standard defines a set of tests. Each manufacturers vehicles need to be certified at each level. What scares me is POLITICS. Will politics get in the way and decide to just bypass these standards and let the manufacturers decide for themselves. SAE has spent YEARS on the development of these standards getting input from hundreds of sources. If the standards are adhered to then I welcome autonomous vehicles.
I would say we’ve reached level 4 (of #0 to #5 levels) in the 4 US cities that have commercial robo-taxis picking up and delivering passengers. By SAE’s definition, an autonomous taxi service that operates under limited conditions is a level 4.
There are trial locations that have more weather than the 4 cities now being served likely trying to develop that 6th level… Level 5 (confusing numbering choice… like European elevators!)
But of course private citizens can’t buy them, only hire them.
I don’t think we are there yet. I like being in control of the vehicle I’m in.
If a self-driving car has a flaw and is speeding. and the cop pulls the vehicle over (if it will even stop) Who would get the ticket? The owner of the vehicle? The manufacture because of the flaw? Not really expecting an answer. just thinking out loud, LOL
I think off-road and weather conditions, like snow, are the main difficulties for autonomous cars. However, I believe that in the future, AI will help them navigate in critical or uncommon situations.
What if the robo-taxi was given the command to get the passenger from point A to point B in a timely and manor, a wreck happens a short distance in front of it and it takes longer than expected to get by or around the wreck, then has to recalculate a different route that is much less traveled and statistically a very safe road but with a low speed limit… Being a robo-taxi with AI and able to take all the information could it/would it use all that said information to think (cause that is what AI does right?) that it would be statistically safe enough, given the passenger requires being at point B (for whatever reason) and speed (at least on that one road) enough to make up lost time and get said passenger to point B on time…??.. Then a not known yet speed camera catches it, who gets the ticket??
Which program (algorithm?) would take over, remember it is programed by humans that would probably speed to get to point B, the I have to get from point A to B in X time frame given safety, or the speed limit which it calculated is really to low to begin with???
Says who? Google has already driven a car from San-Francisco to Seattle Washington and parked itself in a parking garage autonomously. There are already autonomous Semi’s on the road. I agree there’s more work to be done. But I firmly believe it’s coming. If I was younger, I might have seeked a job as a software designer in this field.
Some states already have. They’ve adopted the SAE standards for autonomous vehicles. Others haven’t yet or deem it not necessary yet. Many politicians don’t listen to the scientists or engineers and make decisions on what their religion or so called “gut” tells them.
In much of Europe, the ground floor is zero or “lobby”. The next floor is floor “one” and so on. In the US we call the ground floor “one” and the next floor “two”.
