Driverless Cars Actually Need A Driver – A Full Update.
Friday, 11. May 2018
Years ago, whilst in industry with a proper job, I had use of the company’s chauffeur car and driver. I hated getting up at the crack of dawn to be in say Birmingham by 10.00am so being picked up by the chauffeur was one of life’s little luxuries that I liked.
I could go through paperwork or more important I could have a little snooze and arrive at the other end fully charged up.
So whilst there is a lot to dislike about driverless (autonomous) cars, the one big advantage for me was that I could effectively be chauffeur driven again. Have a snooze, read a newspaper or report, listen to music, watch a movie or anything else that took my fancy whilst being transported to my destination was very appealing.
Unfortunately, we now learn that this is not going to be the case. We had already learned that we couldn’t get plastered then jump into the car and let it drive us home via the kebab shop.
We still need to be responsible and whilst ‘in control’ of the car adhere to all drink and driving regulations. But now we learn that drivers may still be required to actually watch the road.
Proposed new laws, aimed at drivers of autonomous vehicles, will stop drivers from doing anything that will distract them, including reading newspapers, watching TV and using their phones. The aim is to ensure that drivers are able to take back controls in an emergency.
A new study carried out by autonomous vehicle consortium Venturer concluded that it takes 2 seconds between instructing the car that the driver is taking back control and actually assuming total control.
At 50mph that represents a distance of 45 metres when neither the car nor the driver are in control.
With this in mind the regulations will seek to reduce the ‘out of control’ period to as little as possible by making sure that drivers are always alert and not being distracted.
Report director Professor Sarah Sharples, said that , ‘It may be necessary for the rollout of highly autonomous vehicles to be accompanied with the advice, or even law, that in some or all circumstances the driver must maintain attention to the driver situation and that other activities should be minimised or avoided.’
Others have called for a totally new driving test for drivers of autonomous cars. Professor Natasha Merat from the Institute for Transport Studies has suggested that there should be a new form of licensing and training for autonomous vehicles.
The ‘handover lag’ between car and driver presents a challenge for insurers if there is an accident because attributing blame between car and driver could prove difficult.
It has even been suggested that response times should be taken into account with older drivers paying more than younger drivers as they would be slower to respond. Think I’ll buy some Lotto tickets and with the winnings get another chauffeur! By Graham Hill
