As self-driving cars increase in popularity, the question of legal liability remains. The driver, automobile manufacturer and software designers all have a role to play.
Pedestrians are wary of autonomous cars, but they trust traffic lights. Researchers suggest driverless cars could communicate directly with the signals to make their own actions more predictable.
LiDAR helps an autonomous vehicle ‘visualize’ what’s around it.
Yulong Can with data from Baidu Apollo
Driverless vehicles rely heavily on sensors to navigate the world. They're vulnerable to attack if bad actors trick them into 'seeing' things that aren't there, potentially leading to deadly crashes.
The sweeping introduction of driverless cars could see more vehicles on the road, driving longer distances. But smart planning could solve some of transit-associated environmental and social problems.
Autonomous vehicles can only travel at speed at close quarters in the absence of human drivers, cyclists and pedestrians.
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Self-driving vehicles that constantly roam the streets looking for passengers could overwhelm cities. But, if kept in check, these vehicles could be useful for improving urban transport.
A whole range of social and technological changes could revolutionise how we travel in the coming decades.
Car owners’ attachment to driving and the willingness of others to switch from public transport could confound rosy predictions for autonomous vehicles.
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Scenarios based on a survey of Adelaide commuters and analyses of traffic flows show it's possible the congestion could get worse in the transition to driverless vehicles.
Would that it were so simple.
Olivier Le Moal/Shutterstock.
Planes, trains and automobiles produced a step-change in the speed of travel – driverless and electric cars simply cannot deliver such radical improvements.
Driverless cars will form a fast, efficient transport network, which will make car ownership redundant. But they could also spell the end of public transport.
The real ethical challenge of driverless cars is not deciding how they respond in emergencies – it's facing up to the failings of human drivers.
People expect drivers to stop for them at pedestrian crossings, but what if they know autonomous vehicles will stop any time someone chooses to step in front of them?
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How will people respond once they realise they can rely on autonomous vehicles to stop whenever someone steps out in front of them? Human behaviour might stand in the way of the promised 'autopia'.
As automated technologies are increasingly incorporated into car design, consumers need to educate themselves on these features for safety reasons.
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More manufactured cars are integrating assisted-driving technologies such as parking support and networked dashboards. But what should a consumer look for?