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posted by janrinok on Saturday July 25 2015, @05:36PM   Printer-friendly

While only a small percentage of drivers say they would be completely comfortable in a driverless car, a sizable amount would have no problem as long as they retain some control, according to a University of Michigan report.

Researchers Brandon Schoettle and Michael Sivak of the U-M Transportation Research Institute examined motorists' preferences for vehicle automation, including their overall concern about riding in self-driving cars.

They surveyed 505 licensed drivers and found about 44 percent prefer to retain full control while driving. Nearly 16 percent would rather ride in a completely self-driving vehicle, while almost 41 percent said they prefer a partially self-driving vehicle with only occasional control by the driver.

Male drivers and drivers under 45 are more likely to favor partially or completely self-driving vehicles, the researchers say.

"Self-driving vehicles are often discussed in regard to their potential safety, energy-consumption and environmental benefits, or the existing technical challenges that must be overcome for their successful implementation," Schoettle said. "However, less attention has been paid to considering the actual level of automation, if any, that drivers desire in their vehicle."

While about two-thirds of those surveyed said they are at least moderately concerned about riding in completely self-driving vehicles, that percentage drops to less than half for partially self-driving cars. Women and those 45 and older are more apt to have concerns with either level of automation. According to the U-M report, nearly all respondents (96 percent) would want to have a steering wheel and gas and brake pedals available in completely self-driving vehicles.

As for partially self-driving vehicles, 59 percent of those surveyed said they prefer a combination of three warning modes (sound, visual, vibration) to notify drivers when to take control of the vehicle. About 19 percent thought that sound and visuals would be enough.

Schoettle and Sivak defined the three levels of automation as:

  • Completely self-driving: The vehicle will control all safety-critical functions, even allowing the vehicle to travel without a passenger if required.
  • Partially self-driving: The driver will be able to hand over control of all safety-critical functions to the vehicle; only occasional control by the driver will be required.
  • No self-driving: The driver will always be in complete control of all safety functions, but the driver will be assisted with various advanced technologies.

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  • (Score: 2) by frojack on Saturday July 25 2015, @10:30PM

    by frojack (1554) on Saturday July 25 2015, @10:30PM (#213665) Journal

    The majority of drivers on the road shouldn't BE driving.

    Based on what facts?

    Most drivers can go 20 or 30 years with zero accidents, or at most a scratched bumper.
    Accident rates [wikipedia.org] have been plummeting while vehicle miles driven has been exploding.

    For your assertion to be even vaguely true, you should see the Majority of drivers involved in accidents, and pulled over to the side of the road on every commute.

    http://www.caranddriver.com/features/safety-in-numbers-charting-traffic-safety-and-fatality-data [caranddriver.com]

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 26 2015, @12:33AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday July 26 2015, @12:33AM (#213708)

    Actually, I've been in situations where my skills have saved other drivers from accidents. For instance, someone was tailgating me (so close I couldn't see the top of his hood), and some dipshit pulled out from a carpark right in front of me - it took some serious motorized gymnastics to avoid being the meat in that sandwich.

    Point being that your competence can prevent others' incompetence becoming a major issue, and they get to carry on thinking they're competent at what they do.

     

  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Sunday July 26 2015, @05:41AM

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Sunday July 26 2015, @05:41AM (#213759) Journal

    By your standards, if a person isn't involved in a disastrous accident, and he is not ticketed, for x number of years, then he is a "good driver"?

    Some rather similar claims might be

    I've never been electrocuted, so I'm a good electrician.
    I've never crashed a plane, so I'm a good pilot.
    I've never shot myself, so I'm a good hunter/soldier/cop.
    I've never started a war, so I'm a good president.

    Personally, I genuinely wish that everyone had the opportunity to ride along with the driver of an 18-wheeler. Looking down into the cars around you gives you a very good idea of what people consider to be more important than driving. Looking out over the traffic, rather than staring at the back of the car in front of you is educational. It becomes pretty obvious that a lot of people do not understand their vehicles, or the laws of physics.

    I've certainly done some stupid things in my lifetime of driving. But, I've LEARNED from my stupid mistakes. If you can find a vantage point from which to watch drivers, it becomes pretty obvious that many don't learn. They make the same damned mistakes, again, and again, and again. They TEACH themselves bad habits, and they reinforce those bad habits when they talk with each other.

    The MOST obvious bad habit I can point out, is winter time driving. Many, many, MANY people drive along, maybe watching for ice on the road, and maybe not even watching. They approach a bridge, or an overpass, where ice can be expected. They will drive right up to the ice covered surface, finally see the ice, and HIT THE BRAKES!! You cannot convince people that it is safer to just take their foot off the accelerator, and COAST across the ice covered surface. They see the ice, they hit the brakes, and they spin out of control.

    And, the obvious question is, "Why didn't he/she see the ice from 1/2 mile back?" And, the just-as-obvious answer is, "He/she was focusing limited attention on the road surface fifty yards ahead of the vehicle, instead of looking down the highway."

    Again, find a vantage point from which you can watch the traffic approaching a known hazardous bridge or overpass in the winter. Half or more of the vehicles approaching that point on the highway WILL NOT SLOW DOWN until it is much to late to safely decelerate.

    People don't think, they don't plan their next move, they never leave an escape route in case of a problem. As a population, we have taught ourselves bad habits, we talk about those bad habits with each other to reinforce them. And, because we largely get away with being bad drivers, we congratulate ourselves that we are actually good drivers.

    It's just nuts.

    I'll stand by my statement.

    Oh - on a personal level - I have three sons. Of the three, one should never even have tried to get a driver's license. He failed the test twice, and convinced an ignoramus of an examiner that he was "good enough" on the third attempt. Another son is the typical cautious driver who should only be permitted on the road when driving conditions are perfect. The youngest son has proven himself to be his father's equal, or better. He HAS screwed up a few times, but he never makes the same mistake twice. Being a self analyzing person, he doesn't make excuses to himself, he doesn't gloss over mistakes. He is aware of traffic far out ahead of him, behind him, and on both sides. Whether he's on four wheels, two wheels, or six, he always has an escape route. He PLANS for people around him doing stupid things, and he is always ready to react.

    • (Score: 2) by frojack on Sunday July 26 2015, @06:13AM

      by frojack (1554) on Sunday July 26 2015, @06:13AM (#213762) Journal

      The youngest son has proven himself to be his father's equal

      And there it is.....

      Clearly you have excluded yourself from your pontification that "The majority of drivers on the road shouldn't BE driving."

      Then, ignoring the links to actual traffic statistics, you dismiss them out of hand, and you substitute your own obvious examples, but in doing so you fail to notice just how HIGH the percentage of drivers that negotiate these situations with no particular difficulty. By your own estimation half the cars in any particular area should be found piled in tangled mountains at any given bridge abutment on the first day of a winter storm.

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      • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Sunday July 26 2015, @08:49AM

        by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Sunday July 26 2015, @08:49AM (#213785) Journal

        Uhhhhmmmmm - no I haven't excluded myself. I'm part of the driving population. I am part of your statistics. And, if we are going by statistics, I'm in the upper percentiles. And, I've placed my youngest son up there as at least my equal.

        Again, I suggest that you go out and OBSERVE traffic. Assuming that you are capable of understanding what you see, you will soon conclude that roughly half of all drivers do not belong on the highway at all. Texting and driving? Hand over your license. Drinking and driving? Hand it over. Holy fuck - the drinking and driving bet gets 20% of all drivers alone: http://healthland.time.com/2010/08/27/one-in-five-americans-admits-to-drinking-and-driving/ [time.com]

        No, I'm not one to readily give a second chance to someone convicted of drinking and driving. The stakes are to damned high!

        I would LOVE to test people for their situational awareness. Most bikers are far superior to auto drivers - but not all bikers. When was the last time an 18 wheeler buzzed past you, taking you completely by surprise? That big damned truck didn't magically appear behind you, or beside you. Wherever he came from, it took many seconds, maybe even minutes for him to catch up to you - and if he surprised you when he passed, then your head was probably up your arse. Give up the license already! It big trucks routinely surprise you, then you have no business out on the highways.

        We have no standards worth talking about. Every dumb shit in high school goes for a license, and gubbermint readily hands them over with the absolute minimal testing for competence.

        In some ways, it will be great to see self-driving cars on the highways. I may or may not like their programming, but they will be PREDICTABLE. Self driving cars aren't going to come up an on-ramp, cut straight across six lanes of traffic to get into the fast lane, drive three miles, then cut across those same six lanes of traffic to make a last millisecond exit.

        The stupidity on the road is overwhelming. It's just plain stupid LUCK that we don't have higher fatality rates out there. And, only stupid drivers rely on luck.