# Google's Self Driving Cars Hitting Streets This Summer



## humandriver (Sep 16, 2014)

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/05/1...aped-self-driving-cars-in-silicon-valley.html


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## Ubermon (Aug 19, 2014)

Rather than start another thread, I'll just post this here:

*As Google deploys new robot cars on city streets, DMV scrambles to finish self-driving rulebook*
http://www.mercurynews.com/business...w-robot-cars-city-streets-dmv?source=infinite


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

humandriver said:


> http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/05/1...aped-self-driving-cars-in-silicon-valley.html


That looks like the VW Bugs lil brudder...


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## ElectroFuzz (Jun 10, 2014)

So.... so far speed limited to 30 mph
and using only closely monitored roads.
Google cars "only had 11 accidents"

Awesome

PS I am driving for 32 years with zero accidents.


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

ElectroFuzz said:


> So.... so far speed limited to 30 mph
> and using only closely monitored roads.
> Google cars "only had 11 accidents"
> 
> ...


11 accidents and not one was Google Cars fault.


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## ElectroFuzz (Jun 10, 2014)

observer said:


> 11 accidents and not one was Google Cars fault.


Right....... as soon as we outlaw the "analog drivers" all will be well.
My grand kids might still know how to drive
but their kids will never know what driving even means.


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

ElectroFuzz said:


> Right....... as soon as we outlaw the "analog drivers" all will be well.
> My grand kids might still know how to drive
> but their kids will never know what driving even means.


Lol, I can't even get my kids to drive NOW!

I got my license at 15.5 and had been driving (unofficially) ;-) since I was 12. My oldest boy waited till 21 and my youngest is 20 and no license yet. My daughter on the other hand, is 13 and knows the basics of driving on dirt roads.


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## g00r (Mar 10, 2015)

Bring em on!

Yes it will knock out a lot of jobs (cabs/trucks/couriers/buses) but think of the environmental effects, I reckon a city filled with self driving cars would need about a 1/5th of the vehicles currently registered


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## Bart McCoy (Nov 4, 2014)

ElectroFuzz said:


> So.... so far speed limited to 30 mph
> and using only closely monitored roads.


driving 30mph will cause accidents to others


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## observer (Dec 11, 2014)

ElectroFuzz said:


> So.... so far speed limited to 30 mph
> and using only closely monitored roads.
> Google cars "only had 11 accidents"
> 
> ...


If I read this correctly,

The "30 mph limit" and "closely monitored roads" are for the next generation google autonomous car trials. (future)

The 11 accidents, none caused by the google car, is for vehicles that have driven over a million miles. (Past)


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## doyousensehumor (Apr 13, 2015)

g00r said:


> Bring em on!
> 
> Yes it will knock out a lot of jobs (cabs/trucks/couriers/buses) but think of the environmental effects, I reckon a city filled with self driving cars would need about a 1/5th of the vehicles currently registered


Ah yes 1/5 the number of cars. But ask any uber or taxi, deadhead miles are double. Double miles would be driven therefore double energy use and double the traffic! Empty driveways and parking lots but full traffic on roads.

Per mile the passenger has to pay double the operating cost per mile plus the companies profit. Depreciation goes with time too. that would be the only advantage.


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## g00r (Mar 10, 2015)

Not necessarily. In Melbourne, the only ride sharing app is Uber, which means anyone not using one of the 4 cab companies are using one app, and the job is given to the closest car. So at the moment, Uber is the most efficient service because you don't have as many cars doing dead miles as what the the 4 cab companies are doing.

If the whole city abandoned their cars in favour of self driving cars, the overall number of cars on the road will drop.

If I want to go to the airport, and get a friend to take me, that's two trips. One to and from the airport. A self driving car will drop me off, wait for the next person and pick them up.
If I take an Uber to the airport, the uber may get bored and leave the airport, cruising around near by areas for work. <-- More traffic than self driving
Parents taking kids to school <-- two trips compared to self driving which is only one trip.

Traffic should flow better because the cars are more alert, taking off when the lights turn green, and will accelerate/brake more smoothly. 
I read a stat somewhere that someone braking on a freeway, it has a knock-on affect to the flow of traffic for about 1 km. 
Then consider how trucks on a freeway will sit head to tail, they do it because their driving is smoother and more predictable.


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## doyousensehumor (Apr 13, 2015)

I don't know anything of Melbourne so we may be talking of totally two differnt situations. To simplfy we can pretend there is just one giant fleet of Google cars.

In my hypethetical city of the future in year 2030 where personal cars are extinct, is the Phoenix area. 4 million people here. There are residintual areas and there are business areas of town. 80% of business is clustered together. And then there are dining and entertainment areas. In the mornings lets say the robots all ready go at the houses. They load and take people to work at 6 am. Now there is a shit load of Googles at work and none in the residintual areas. Most of the Googles will drive back empty. Back in 2015 "Betty" would have left her Toyota Yarus at work. No polution and no longer cloging up traffic. But now its 2030 replacement, the Google Robot has to deadhead all the way back because it s the closest vehicule to John who is next up to go to work. 
For the average trip of say 5 miles there is still going to be an average of 3 empty.


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## Tim In Cleveland (Jul 28, 2014)

"Uber is a technology company. We match riders with private driver-less cars and bear no responsibility for accidents or poor performance of the car. We have no obligation to serve wheelchair and special needs riders."
Ummm, I don't think this chit will work.
Will Uber still allow fake rider names when they own the car that is being abused?


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