Technology that we once saw as “space age” is now more accessible than ever before. Gone are the days of being limited to newspapers; we now have digital billboards lighting up the skies. When we use our smartphones, we’re essentially operating little computers that fit in our hands. If you use a device like Amazon’s Alexa, you’re interacting with a type of artificial intelligence. Even customer service is being revolutionized through technology, as 29% of customer service agents now have the potential to be fully automated. This type of technology has become a part of our everyday lives. Therefore, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that self-driving — otherwise known as autonomous — cars are becoming a sharper reality. There were 738 total motor vehicle traffic fatalities in 2017 in tire-related crashes, but autonomous vehicles could one day prevent these kinds of collisions.Autonomous vehicles have already been created, though the cars themselves are largely in a testing stage. However, it’s expected that they will be on the market relatively soon. While some people are overwhelmingly excited about the advent of self-driving cars, others have concerns.
Needless to say, much more testing is going to be done before autonomous cars are released to general consumers. However, the fact is that the game will be changed by these creations. There will be new rules, and before long — to be sure — new laws. As is always the case when there is brand new, game-changing technology available, many are anxious about the potential damage that these vehicles could cause, and what they can do to protect themselves when engaging with them. With that being said, we’re looking into autonomous vehicles with a clear eye. How safe are they really? Let’s find out.
Are Autonomous Cars Safer Than Regular Cars?
In theory, autonomous cars could actually be much safer than cars driven by the typical consumer. Right now, car accident deaths are something of a long-term epidemic in the United States. We can’t do without cars — they’re key to most people’s everyday life — but one reckless driver could unintentionally kill dozens of people. Each year, there are an estimated 6 million car accidents in the United States, and many of them end up being either fatal or otherwise devastating. Of course, there are likely even more that go unreported, either because they’re relatively minor, or because they’re hit and run accidents. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the number of unreported car accidents each year is around 10 million. The idea with autonomous cars is that they will be set to their tracks, and responsive in a way that human beings can’t always be. They won’t be distracted, they won’t drive under the influence — and they’ll keep such drivers off the road. For that matter, these vehicles would also allow disabled people to use cars safely. Essentially, these cars would clear the road of the potential human errors that have so often in the past caused people to be hurt on the road. Therefore, they would hypothetically be safer than typical cars.
What Are The Potential Problems With Autonomous Cars?
Human error, in many ways, is the issue regarding autonomous cars just as it is with the types of cars that we’re used to. The fact is that technology isn’t perfect, and glitches can occur. While we can predict the types of issues that come with human drivers, autonomous cars will be so new that we might not be able to predict when they’ll present problems. This means that a car could run itself off the road, or stop in the middle of the street without warning. For that matter, just as any computer system could be hacked, so too could the systems operating autonomous cars be hijacked and manipulated, potentially to horrendous effects. Now, with that being said, there have been amazing strides made regarding automated technology. Although there are pilots at hand operating planes in flight, the systems for most commercial jets are largely automated in many ways. Of course, three million people fly on commercial jets each year, safely and without issue. But in those cases, the pilots can operate the planes independently, therefore being ready to intervene in case of an emergency. As such, the planes are not truly, completely automated. If autonomous cars were essentially put on autopilot, with the drivers ready to intervene if need be, they may be much safer. However, there are still issues present in this case.
What Are The Laws Regarding Autonomous Cars?
Because autonomous cars have yet to become widely available, they still have to be completely “figured out” by the legal system. In 2016, the U.S. Department of Transportation produced its own rules on autonomous vehicles, which promised that as these vehicles would become available, so too would policies governing them. It’s important that these vehicles be properly regulated. With that being said, attorneys will need to adjust their approaches to traffic law as well — especially personal injury attorneys. Right now, auto accidents are among the most common types of personal injury cases, along with medical malpractice, premises liability, product liability, and wrongful death claims. Personal injury attorneys will need to navigate how to protect their clients in cases involving autonomous vehicles. Will the manufacturers of these vehicles be held responsible when they fail? Will it be an issue of the government approving such technology? Much will not be known until these vehicles are made available to the average consumer.
It’s easy to understand why many people are so anxious about the invention of autonomous vehicles. With that being said, there are many positives to this technology — it will definitely make it easier, when executed correctly, for people to be transported safely. After all, car accidents account for 52% of all personal injury lawsuits. Of course, the law needs to evolve alongside this technology. As long as policies change and these cars are regulated and monitored, they will hopefully be much safer products — even if a completely safe car is virtually impossible to create.
