Google Cars Drive Themselves, in Traffic
Very cool, but I sometimes worry that the illusion of safety is more dangerous than the original danger itself.<p>In Boulder, where I live, several crosswalks were identified as being particularly dangerous for pedestrians, and pedestrian crossing signs with big flashing lights were installed at these locations over the past 5 years. This spring, a report was released[1] that showed accidents at many of these crosswalks had actually <i>increased</i> since the lights were installed. "Taken together, the data suggests that approximately eight additional crossing accidents per year occur at these locations," says the report.<p>There are lots of theories about why, but I think it boils down to one thing: when pedestrians can hit a button and light up these big signs which are supposed to make everyone stop, it makes them feel much safer, to the point that many people will hit the button and start walking almost immediately, without taking the time to make sure that all lanes of traffic are aware of their presence and stopping.<p>The prospect of automated cars scares me because, obviously, they cannot be perfect, and they will not be able to identify every dangerous driving scenario. Of course, there is a manual override, but I fear that the car being right 99% of the time will lead to such a complacency in "drivers" that, in the 1% of cases where the car is wrong and about to hit something, we will not be able to stop in time. The more accurate the car is, the more safe we feel, and the less likely we are to monitor it as closely and notice when it is wrong.<p>Anyway, I rather hope I'm wrong. I'd really like to drink my coffee and read during my commute as my car drives me to work.<p>[1] <a href="http://www.dailycamera.com/boulder-county-news/ci_14859190" rel="nofollow">http://www.dailycamera.com/boulder-county-news/ci_14859190</a>