If driverless cars are the answer, what's the question?

Changes to the Highway Code that will permit drivers of autonomous cars to watch films while they're behind the wheel seem premature given the tech isn't currently permitted to be used on Britain's roads, so when - and more importantly, why - will driverless cars arrive on British roads?

We've lost count of all the benefits promised of driverless car tech. Motorists are being teased with visions of driverless cars as luxurious and relaxing private retreats clever enough to take over menial tasks, but ready to relinquish control at a moment's notice. At the same time, pedestrians and cyclists marvel at the promise of roads on which all cars are travelling at, or below, the speed limit. As a result, it's assumed vehicles equipped with automated driver function (ADF) will be involved in fewer crashes.

We desperately need vehicles to operate within traffic law, but who is to say that the technology will function as imagined?

One of the potential dangers associated with ADF is the risk the driver will fall asleep at the wheel. As a result, the car's are able to monitor the alertness of the person behind the wheel. If the car believes the driver is asleep, or hasn't responded to a request for them to take back control of the vehicle - in the case of roadworks, for example - the car will come to a stop. Car makers are suggesting the car should stop wherever it is - even lane three of a motorway. Others argue the cars should be capable of puling into a lay-by before stopping.

This is just one example of the tricky safety, legal and ethical questions posed by driverless car technology. And when things go wrong, according to the law commissions for England and Wales, and Scotland, drivers should not be legally responsible for road safety when travelling in autonomous cars.

According to the report, drivers should be defined in law as as a 'user-in-charge'. In the event of a crash, the car maker or provider of the software would be held responsible.

Driverless cars - too good to be true?

If you think all the claims surrounding driverless cars sound too good to be true, you're not alone. Christian Wolmar is an award-winning writer and broadcaster specialising in transport: "People say we've got 1.25m people killed on the world's roads every year across the world - we will remove that danger - remove it with this technology. I'm not sure these driverless cars will ever be developed in the way that they envisage. There's no guarantee that they actually will be safer. They will still have software that is programmed by human beings. The cars will still be on the roads in potential collisions."

Christian Wolmar appears in our crowdfunded documentary Stop Killing our Children, which can be viewed in full on Vimeo

https://vimeo.com/389461872

While there appears to be an inevitability about autonomous vehicles - with some carmakers claiming they'll be on British roads by the end of the year - many questions about their safety remain unanswered. It's hard to think of an aspect of life that wouldn't be improved by a reduction in our dependency on cars; better air quality, safer streets, quieter neighbourhoods, more independent children, not to mention helping to mitigate the climate emergency. However, driverless cars do not offer a convincing solution. We need fewer cars, not fewer drivers.

The ethical choice

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