# We are in the hype cycle of autonomous car development...



## Retired Senior (Sep 12, 2016)

Well Boys and Girls, the cars may be more or less ready by 2020, but more and more experts don't think that we humans will be ready until 2040 or so...

And I still want to know if a SDV will prioritize saving a cat's life over getting a fender bender!









*Autonomous car companies report getting rear-ended in most crashes, blame driver error*
*Experts suggest the issue may stem from computers driving more cautiously than the humans with which it shares the road*
10/20/2017 | ConsumerAffairs |  Automotive











*By Amy Martyn*

Amy Martyn is a writer and investigative reporter now based in San Diego by way of Tijuana, BC, Dallas, TX and Los Angeles, CA. She primarily writes about how consumers, taxpayers and businesses are affected by corporate and government policies. Read Full Bio→










Photo (c) Grendelkhan - Wikimedia
Drivers have a tendency to rear end self-driving cars on the road, according to early data from tests underway in California.

California is the only state that requires companies testing autonomous prototypes to report collisions. A total of 19 crashes involving self-driving cars have been reported to the state DMV in 2017, a fraction of the 285 vehicles getting tested there.

Federal authorities have high hopes that self-driving technology will be a solution to the thousands of accidents that kill people every year. California reported a total of 3,680 motor vehicle deaths in 2016. Companies racing to bring autonomous cars to the masses have argued that the rear-end collisions with their technology are a clear indication of human fault.

Dr. Phil Koopman, a software engineer and Carnegie Mellon professor who works as a consultant for self-driving car companies, says it's not that simple. He speculates that people may be prone to rear-ending autonomous cars because the "robots" powering the cars don't quite mimic the behavior of human drivers.

"A possible explanation is that these cars don't drive the same way that people do," Koopman tells ConsumerAffairs. "And if they don't drive the same way that people do, people's expectations of the vehicles would be incorrect."

*Limited regulations *

Federal regulators, though excited about the technology, have been unable to keep up with the rapid pace of the industry. Transportation officials in a September 12 report offered the industry only "voluntary guidance" on safety rules. The Department of Transportation explains that they are taking "a nonregulatory approach to automated vehicle technology safety."

In the absence of federal regulations, states have proposed bills to monitor autonomous vehicles at the local level. California, home to Silicon Valley and 42 brands testing the technology, has led the way. The California DMV requires reporting all prototype-related accidents or disengagements-the industry term for incidents in which the human driver has to resume manual control. It also has a permitting system in place for people who operate the autonomous cars as testers.

*Most accident-prone test models*

This year, autonomous vehicles operated by General Motors have been involved in thirteen crashes in California, overtaking Google's lead in the crash count for the two previous years.

"None were the fault of the autonomous vehicle," General Motors spokesman Tony Cervone tells Consumer Affairs via email. "One of the biggest causes of all accidents is other drivers being distracted or failing to maintain an adequate stopping distance."

Cruise Automation, as General Motors' self-driving brand is called, says that they have 100 cars on the road, the largest fleet of autonomous vehicles in California.

*A road hazard*

Not all of the cases reported to California DMV can clearly be pinned on other drivers. Google last year admitted that it "bears some responsibility" for a March 2016 crash reported to the California DMV, in which a Lexus SUV, operating under Google's autonomous technology, hit the side of a bus. The Google car was attempting to drive around sandbags in the right-hand lane when it "made contact" with the bus in the center lane.

Google's self-driving car program has since spun off into a new company called Waymo, and a more recent incident report from 2017 indicates that detecting and responding to unexpected road hazards could still present a concern. On August 26, a tester in the Waymo AV disengaged the car's autonomous technology when he saw an object in the road, according to the crash report. He then quickly swerved right, hitting a van in the next lane over and causing minor damage.

In a statement, Waymo says that its technology would have detected the unnamed object had the tester not interfered. "Our review shows our system detected the object and would have responded appropriately and avoided the crash," Waymo's press team writes to ConsumerAffairs via email.

*
A long road ahead*

While Google and other industry powerhouses have made bold predictions that self-driving cars will be ready for consumers as early as 2020, Koopman says that timeline is unrealistic. He predicts it will take closer to two decades to resolve kinks in the technology.

"I think having a car that is able to be mostly self-driving in extremely limited circumstances," such as driving within one city, "is doable," he says. "I think that people are being very optimistic about how long we'll have to get to something to where the human does not have to pay attention. It's new technology. It's immature technology. We're still figuring out how to make it work. We're in a hype cycle."


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## MHR (Jul 23, 2017)

Retired Senior said:


> In a statement, Waymo says that its technology would have detected the unnamed object had the tester not interfered. "Our review shows our system detected the object and would have responded appropriately and avoided the crash," Waymo's press team writes to ConsumerAffairs via email.


Can you imagine the berating the poor dude got for overriding the autopilot.

Now we just have to wait for the Tomato to post 5 articles rebutting your article.


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## tomatopaste (Apr 11, 2017)

Retired Senior said:


> Well Boys and Girls, the cars may be more or less ready by 2020, but more and more experts don't think that we humans will be ready until 2040 or so...
> 
> And I still want to know if a SDV will prioritize saving a cat's life over getting a fender bender!
> 
> ...





MHR said:


> Can you imagine the berating the poor dude got for overriding the autopilot.
> 
> Now we just have to wait for the Tomato to post 5 articles rebutting your article.


Good thing it's Friday night otherwise the Tomato would be all up in that sheet.


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## tomatopaste (Apr 11, 2017)

MHR said:


> Can you imagine the berating the poor dude got for overriding the autopilot.
> 
> Now we just have to wait for the Tomato to post 5 articles rebutting your article.


Truly one of the all-time dumbest articles ever written about self driving cars. Kudos, Amy Martyn. Every few weeks some lefty twit reporter feels the need to write an article about how it's the self driving car's fault for getting pounded in the rear.

"Hey, she was asking for it, don't blame the rapist."

"He predicts it will take closer to two decades to resolve kinks in the technology."

So Google was able to take self driving cars from virtually zero, to launching a commercial self driving taxi service in Phoenix by Christmas (less than a decade) but it's going to take another 22 years before they get the kinks worked out. With all due respect, STFU! Amy. This article has nothing to do with reality, but rather your typical commie twit reporter pushing her liberal commie agenda.

Here are some of her recent commie articles. But right, she has no agenda:

*Texas representative cites lawsuit abuse in attempt to gut the Americans with Disabilities Act** 9/21/2017*
So-called lawsuit 'trolls' are being blamed for efforts to dismantle the civil rights legislation

*Company says its natural gas pipeline 'operated safely' through Hurricane Irma** 9/14/2017*
However, activists say the Sabal Trail Pipeline is dangerous and needs to be removed

*Electric appliances becoming the 'new frontier' in climate change battle 7/7/2017*
California sees a new campaign for home and building owners to stop using natural gas

*Local lawmakers carry heavier climate change burden in wake of Paris accord** 6/6/2017*
Even corporations that plan to burn more fossil fuel are critical of President Trump's decision to leave the Paris climate agreement.

*Fight for single-payer exposes divide between the nation's nurses and doctors.** 5/25/2017*
Nurses are demanding that lawmakers bring single-payer health care to the United States

*What humans can learn from research on turtles exposed to plastics and birth control** 5/18/2017*
The way that turtles respond to a common chemical has disturbing implications for people

*Feds admit marijuana may reduce opioid use** 5/4/2017*
As the country struggles through an opioid crisis, researchers point to an alternative

*GOP health plan would mean higher premiums, less coverage for elderly, report cautions** 3/14/2017*
The plan would reduce the federal deficit by cutting Medicaid and shifting costs to consumers

*Study says more access to birth control could save $12 billion** 3/10/2017*
A Planned Parenthood-backed study argues that all women should have access to birth control implants

*United Nations report accuses pesticide, seed industry of human rights violations** 3/9/2017*
Industrial agriculture and pesticides will not feed the world, UN experts say.

*In North Dakota, protesters are heavily monitored while a pipeline leak is ignored** 3/3/2017*
A major protest and a major pipeline spill, both on reservations, drew very different responses

*Warm temperatures, not just drought, are shrinking the Colorado River, study says** 2/24/2017*
The lifeblood of the Southwest is losing its flow

*Will the EPA continue clamping down on asbestos under Trump?** 2/1/2017*
Obama imposed tougher regulations on toxic chemicals in consumer products

*ExxonMobil, facing investigations over climate denial, says it is being discriminated against** 12/22/2016*
Environmental groups hit with subpoenas as Rex Tillerson and company go on the offensive

*Exxon's investors sue energy giant for downplaying climate concerns** 11/25/2016*
After Exxon revealed that it would have to write off some oil reserves, investors are suing

*Wind developers expect more of the same under President Trump** 11/15/2016*
The renewable industry isn't expecting more tax breaks, but they are optimistic that they will keep what exists.

*Drug companies enjoy 2016 election victories** 11/10/2016*
Republicans to lower drug costs? Pharma companies aren't convinced

*Health insurance industry rakes in billions while blaming Obamacare for losses** 11/1/2016*
Major insurance companies are enjoying record profits but claim they are losing money under the Affordable Care Act


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## WeirdBob (Jan 2, 2016)

Retired Senior said:


> And I still want to know if a SDV will prioritize saving a cat's life over getting a fender bender!"


I sure hope so!


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## goneubering (Aug 17, 2017)

Retired Senior said:


> Well Boys and Girls, the cars may be more or less ready by 2020, but more and more experts don't think that we humans will be ready until 2040 or so...
> 
> And I still want to know if a SDV will prioritize saving a cat's life over getting a fender bender!
> 
> ...


CA is the only state to require reporting of SDC crashes?? That's just dumb.


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## Retired Senior (Sep 12, 2016)

_


tomatopaste said:



Truly one of the all-time dumbest articles ever written about self driving cars. Kudos, Amy Martyn. Every few weeks some lefty twit reporter feels the need to write an article about how it's the self driving car's fault for getting pounded in the rear.

Click to expand...

_


tomatopaste said:


> _"Hey, she was asking for it, don't blame the rapist."_
> 
> _"He predicts it will take closer to two decades to resolve kinks in the technology."_
> 
> ...





tomatopaste said:


> *Health insurance industry rakes in billions while blaming Obamacare for losses** 11/1/2016*
> _Major insurance companies are enjoying record profits but claim they are losing money under the Affordable Care Act_


Note: I had to edit out some of the duplicated text.... just too much purple prose!

Now then, TP, I just don't know where to start!
Let's take a brief glance at some of the topic headlines that apparently upset you so much:

*What humans can learn from research on turtles exposed to plastics and birth control** 5/18/2017*
The way that turtles respond to a common chemical has disturbing implications for people
*Historically, don't ALL new meds proposed for human use get tested on animals first?*

*Feds admit marijuana may reduce opioid use** 5/4/2017*
As the country struggles through an opioid crisis, researchers point to an alternative
*Why shouldn't all alternatives (including yoga and meditation and electro-shock therapy, be considered. For the majority of pot users, marijuana is NOT physically addicting.*

*GOP health plan would mean higher premiums, less coverage for elderly, report cautions** 3/14/2017*
The plan would reduce the federal deficit by cutting Medicaid and shifting costs to consumers

*Seriously TP, you are going to argue with this simple statement? Are you objecting to the two sentences or are you objecting to the concept that elderly Americans should have the right to decent health care? Maybe you believe that we should take everyone who is over 50 and not financially middle class or better and simply shoot them...*

*Study says more access to birth control could save $12 billion** 3/10/2017*
A Planned Parenthood-backed study argues that all women should have access to birth control implants
*Do you deny that fiscally poor women having children born into poverty eventually cost Society far more money that giving them birth control assistance would cost?
*
*United Nations report accuses pesticide, seed industry of human rights violations** 3/9/2017*
Industrial agriculture and pesticides will not feed the world, UN experts say.
*Monsanto is the poster corp in the battle to control global food production by creating non propagating plants , the seeds of which must be bought anew every year from Monsanto. It a soul-less corporation that has tried to monetize every chemical it has ever made or discovered, with no regard to ethics , morality, or the health and well being of ANY living creature. Monsanto has been trying to control the agriculture business worldwide for decades. Finally people are seeing thru it's public relations bullshit. Or do you think that Agent Orange was a boon to Humanity?

*


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## tomatopaste (Apr 11, 2017)

Retired Senior said:


> Note: I had to edit out some of the duplicated text.... just too much purple prose!
> 
> Now then, TP, I just don't know where to start!
> Let's take a brief glance at some of the topic headlines that apparently upset you so much:
> ...


Point being, you can sum up all her writings with:

capitalism bad
Gop bad
we're killing the planet


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## Retired Senior (Sep 12, 2016)

tomatopaste said:


> Point being, you can sum up all her writings with:
> 
> capitalism bad
> Gop bad
> we're killing the planet


TP you are really oversimplifying! But I can't tell if you are serious or playing a game, so I will leave you to it. I'm off to the movies.


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## heynow321 (Sep 3, 2015)

Tp's boss must not be happy with the ineffectiveness of his propaganda


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