Self-driving Cars
The advancements and diversity of automobiles today almost guarantees self-driving cars will be common on the road in a couple years. At least, that’s what the ads say. I still have plenty of questions, though. What happens if a driver falls asleep? In the event of a rear end crash, can the car stop its forward movement? Although drivers may not email while behind the wheel, or fall asleep, or have a stroke or heart attack, humans are still the leading cause of self-driving accidents. Automakers are not too informative, which leads to my skepticism. It would be helpful to share more real situations to help others like me to embrace the concept.
On the positive side (heartbreaking for us USAers), China plows ahead. Their experiences have not always been encouraging, yet they will not give statistics exposing failures. Again, I have questions. Are they testing mostly in crowded cities, like Beijing? Or on open roads with limited traffic in less populated areas? They won’t give details. I guess it’s a good idea to let another country lead in testing. Who knows, maybe we can share.
