self-driving cars have trouble with bike lanes!

Look the fuck out, eh?!

After reports of Uber's self-driving cars running red lights and failing to stop for pedestrians during trips in San Francisco, the company has also admitted to issues with its autonomous vehicles navigating around (and legally interacting with) bike lanes. A spokesperson told The Guardian that the company was working to fix a flaw that allowed cars to turn into cycling lanes. Instead of merging into lanes ahead of making a right-hand turn, SF Bicycle Coalition executive director Brian Weidenmeier said he saw Uber's self-driving cars make unsafe turns through bike lanes, twice.

https://www.engadget.com/2016/12/20/uber-admits-its-self-driving-cars-have-trouble-with-bike-lanes/

One wonders if a self-driving car does hit me while in a bike lane will I be charged with assault If I take my u-lock out and beat the ever living fuck out of that car.

Just lay still and wait for paramedics - a lawsuit would make the cars safer, sooner. The lock is just for teaching humans.

motorcycles too:

http://www.fema-online.eu/website/wp-content/uploads/RDW_141016_EN.pdf

i think self driving is scary not just for the passengers of these cars but also for the the general public

Posted by: Naboo12

i think self driving is scary not just for the passengers of these cars but also for the the general public

That said, there are a lot of people who are scary to drive with, do stupid stuff, and should not have licenses, too. 

I guess there is not enough data to make good comparisons yet, but my bet is it won't be long before the safety statistics greatly favor autonomous drivers versus human ones...

People are the shittiest drivers around... :)

Posted by: tungsten

Look the fuck out, eh?!

After reports of Uber's self-driving cars running red lights and failing to stop for pedestrians during trips in San Francisco, the company has also admitted to issues with its autonomous vehicles navigating around (and legally interacting with) bike lanes. A spokesperson told The Guardian that the company was working to fix a flaw that allowed cars to turn into cycling lanes. Instead of merging into lanes ahead of making a right-hand turn, SF Bicycle Coalition executive director Brian Weidenmeier said he saw Uber's self-driving cars make unsafe turns through bike lanes, twice.

https://www.engadget.com/2016/12/20/uber-admits-its-self-driving-cars-have-trouble-with-bike-lanes/

So they're the same as human drivers then.

Posted by: Kenny

Posted by: Naboo12

i think self driving is scary not just for the passengers of these cars but also for the the general public

That said, there are a lot of people who are scary to drive with, do stupid stuff, and should not have licenses, too. 

I guess there is not enough data to make good comparisons yet, but my bet is it won't be long before the safety statistics greatly favor autonomous drivers versus human ones...

People are the shittiest drivers around... :)

Fair enough, but when the human driver fucks up they can be held responsible . When the autonomous car fucks up who do you hold responsible ?

Posted by: FLATCH

Posted by: Kenny

Posted by: Naboo12

i think self driving is scary not just for the passengers of these cars but also for the the general public

That said, there are a lot of people who are scary to drive with, do stupid stuff, and should not have licenses, too. 

I guess there is not enough data to make good comparisons yet, but my bet is it won't be long before the safety statistics greatly favor autonomous drivers versus human ones...

People are the shittiest drivers around... :)

Fair enough, but when the human driver fucks up they can be held responsible . When the autonomous car fucks up who do you hold responsible ?

The manufacturer of the vehicle? Plus I imagine self driving cars will still require insurance of some kind..

Yeah. Assuming they don't hit and run, they're only held responsible in fairly loose fashion via insurance premiums unless they do something criminally negligent. Auto makers have always been liable for accidents that occur due to issues with the vehicles themselves. Plenty of precedent for that.

Cars are drive by wire now - think about it - there is no mechanical cable running from your accelerator pedal to your throttle. Your pedal has a sensor that gets interpreted by a computer, and then the computer decides when to accelerate and how much. Same for steering on many cars. It was less than 10 years ago Toyota had all of those issues with throttles staying open and it was really the same thing. Cost them lots of money. 10 years ago drive and steer by wire seemed like risky technical challenges haphazardly pushed on us by automakers.

My point was that 10 years ago everyone made the exact same comments about how "scary" it was that it was the car computer actually opening the throttle or turning the wheels. Now it's the most mundane on the planet.

Technology will be improved and essentially perfected. Humans will by and large always be idiots trying to drink a coffee, yell at  their kids in the  back seat, and eat a Subway sandwich while changing lanes on the freeway. I'll take the computer drivers, thanks.

Meat-sacks should never be allowed to drive.

Posted by: ReductiMat

Meat-sacks should never be allowed to drive.

He's baa-aack.

That's pretty much what I think when I'm driving. "Why are we allowed to do this? This is madness!!

The problem is that the self-appointed critics are looking for perfection.  Any accident involving a fully or partially autonomous vehicle becomes another lightning rod for another "OMG how can we trust this tech" flurry of FUD.

Statistically, current levels of autonomy (typically level 2/3) are showing a net 15-40% reduction in accidents (depending on whose stats you draw from).  If semi-autonomous driving were rolled out across all vehicles in North America today, that would result in thousands fewer deaths daily.  So there will still be accidents, there will still be deaths, and the circumstances and geometry of accidents may change, but there will be a clear improvement over meatbags having full control.