Driverless car kills woman in America

Listening to radio last night /this morning and it was reported a driverless car knocked over a woman in America who was on a crossing point .should we continue with this sort of technology and in cases like this who would /should be held responsible ?

apparently she walked out in front of it, but then that happens all the time and maybe the technologys not good enough to spot this and take measures?

The fact that this is news, just shows how safer they are than driven cars. Imagine if every time someone died as result of driver error, somewhere in the world, that was also reported...

---------- Post added 21-03-2018 at 13:39 ----------

Well, to be fair, we need to compare deaths per mile for human VS computer driven cars.

The fact that this is news, just shows how safer they are than driven cars. Imagine if every time someone died as result of driver error, somewhere in the world, that was also reported...

its in the news cos its new, NOT safer

its in the news cos its new, NOT safer

I would argue, it's new because it's such a rare occurrence.

---------- Post added 21-03-2018 at 13:43 ----------

Any data on deaths per mile driven of human vs computer driven cars? Surely that's what we should be monitoring as the technology develops.

I would argue, it's new because it's such a rare occurrence.

 

---------- Post added 21-03-2018 at 13:43 ----------

 

Any data on deaths per mile driven of human vs computer driven cars? Surely that's what we should be monitoring as the technology develops.

Could argue that had it been driven the driver could have responded better by anticipating the situation

Imagine if it had been one of the driverless trucks they are trailing now in uk

I would argue, it's new because it's such a rare occurrence.

 

---------- Post added 21-03-2018 at 13:43 ----------

 

Any data on deaths per mile driven of human vs computer driven cars? Surely that's what we should be monitoring as the technology develops.

surely to be accurate and fair you need to have them running for the same length of time too?

you cant say driverless is safer as theres been 1 to the thousands if not millions of driver car deaths, you need to take into account that cars have been around since about 1900? ish

Terrible news in every conceivable way. Do we have any actual info, - even just a link that describes what appears to have happened?

Driverless cars will never be completely infallible, - all the sensors in the world won't allow the car to stop instantly from even 30mph if someone just steps out without looking or even deliberately throws themselves in the way. Even if the reaction speed is a million times faster there is still an actual stopping distance. I watched a couple of vids the other day of people deliberately throwing themselves on car bonnets to try and make insurance claims, -does this actually happen?!

If this turns out to be that the car didn't even try to stop, that is of far far greater concern.

Listening to radio last night /this morning and it was reported a driverless car knocked over a woman in America who was on a crossing point .should we continue with this sort of technology and in cases like this who would /should be held responsible ?

What wasn't reported was that on the same day dozens, possibly hundreds of cars driven by humans killed people.

I don't see a suggestion anywhere that we discontinue humans driving cars, but the evidence so far is that they're more dangerous than self driven ones.

And the latest news is that the pedestrian stepped into the path of the car which short of breaking the laws of physics could do nothing to avoid her.

---------- Post added 21-03-2018 at 14:28 ----------

apparently she walked out in front of it, but then that happens all the time and maybe the technologys not good enough to spot this and take measures?

It's not magic if that's what you mean.

---------- Post added 21-03-2018 at 14:29 ----------

Could argue that had it been driven the driver could have responded better by anticipating the situation

 

Imagine if it had been one of the driverless trucks they are trailing now in uk

You could, but you'd be making that argument without any actual facts to back it up wouldn't you.

---------- Post added 21-03-2018 at 14:29 ----------

surely to be accurate and fair you need to have them running for the same length of time too?

you cant say driverless is safer as theres been 1 to the thousands if not millions of driver car deaths, you need to take into account that cars have been around since about 1900? ish

That's why you look at deaths per mile driven.

What wasn't reported was that on the same day dozens, possibly hundreds of cars driven by humans killed people.

I don't see a suggestion anywhere that we discontinue humans driving cars, but the evidence so far is that they're more dangerous than self driven ones.

 

And the latest news is that the pedestrian stepped into the path of the car which short of breaking the laws of physics could do nothing to avoid her..

The last paragraph could apply to "driven car" accidents as well I suppose..

Last year whilst waiting for a bus, I observed a small white cat dash out of a garden, across the walkway, and infront of a parked white van

straggling the wallway and road. A car coming up the road and yes you have guest it, the cat was struck by the car's near-side front wheel.

If it was a driveless car the same thing would have happened.

Now consider what may have happened if there had been more than one driveless car, say second driverless car travelling in the opposite

direction. The second car may have detected and predicted the accident about to occur and signalled to the first car thereby preventing

the accident.

The last paragraph could apply to "driven car" accidents as well I suppose..

Absolutely, neither automatic nor human drivers can do much if a pedestrian steps out directly ahead of them.