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Most Drivers Don't Understand Limitations of Car Safety Systems, AAA Finds (usatoday.com)
A new study by AAA found that most drivers don't understand the limitations of advanced safety technology installed on their new vehicles. "The study indicates that drivers overestimate the capabilities of features such as blind-spot monitoring systems, automatic emergency braking and adaptive cruise control," reports USA Today. "The findings raise questions about whether Americans are ready to adapt to partially self-driving vehicles, which typically require drivers to remain alert and ready to take over the steering wheel if the car can't handle the conditions it encounters." Here are the problem spots flagged by AAA:
- Blind-spot monitoring: Nearly 80 percent of drivers don't understand the limitations or thought that the system had greater capability to detect fast-approaching vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians. Relying too much on blind-spot monitoring, about 25 percent don't look for oncoming vehicles when they change lanes.
- Forward-collision warning and automatic emergency braking: Many drivers confuse the two. One is a warning system, while the other takes action. More than 40 percent of drivers don't know these limitations.
- Adaptive cruise control: About 29 percent of drivers who use this system, which accelerates and brakes on its own, are sometimes comfortable "engaging in other activities" while the system is activated, according to the study. The researchers did note that these safety features can prevent about 40 percent of crashes and 30 percent of crash deaths.
- Forward-collision warning and automatic emergency braking: Many drivers confuse the two. One is a warning system, while the other takes action. More than 40 percent of drivers don't know these limitations.
- Adaptive cruise control: About 29 percent of drivers who use this system, which accelerates and brakes on its own, are sometimes comfortable "engaging in other activities" while the system is activated, according to the study. The researchers did note that these safety features can prevent about 40 percent of crashes and 30 percent of crash deaths.
No matter how you look at it, having a human in the loop is a setup for failure. Public transportation yet again solves this problem in addition to just about every other problem you can think of.
Hire a well-paid, attentive train driver, hold him to the flame, and be done with it.
Try taking a train in the US. It's seriously fucked up.
the individuals are not even bothering to check behind them, or check their side mirrors, etc.because the safety devices in the cars would warn them. The industry has been dumbing down driving. I have always seen this as a problem. You tell individuals buy our car and you won't need to worry about something they won't.
;)
Also if the safety devices may be perfect, How are driver less cars to work at this point in the development cycle. I believe in driver less cars but feel they are further in our future than most think.
Note the Tesla driver putting his car on auto pilot and then watching a movie before his wreak. Can't say that was really Tesla's fault! They say your supposed to be poised with your hands hovering over the wheel and aware of the situation and be ready to take control. In that case I would just be doing the driving to help me stay aware and awake.
Just my 2 cents
I watch a TED talk by the head of googles driverless car project. He said in the talk that you cant partially automate a car for exactly this reason. Has to be all or nothing. Google new this years ago. See here https://www.ted.com/talks/chri...
GENERATION 27: The first time you see this, copy it into your sig on any forum and add 1 to the generation.
"WARNING: This device has a 30% chance of getting your dick torn off if used improperly."
Politicians and marketers learned you have to be short, blunt, dramatic, and over-simplistic to get anybody's attention these days.
Table-ized A.I.
Some of these numbers seem about like what I've observed of drivers who probably don't have these technologies. Within the past week I've had at least 4 drivers I can remember, including a bus driver and a truck driver, switch lanes while I was beside them. I doubt I drove more than about 80 miles total during that time - all in city traffic. I don't think the vehicles I remember were new enough to have blind spot monitoring or that I was really in a blind spot. Also, I drive about the same speed as the other traffic, so I was not approaching fast or anything that could have caused the issue. None of them looked.
Also, I've seen people going down the interstate reading newspapers, reading books, shaving, etc. most of my life. They were likely using plain old-fashioned non-adaptive cruise control. I don't know that 29% feeling comfortable doing other things while using their adaptive cruise control is a significant increase over regular cruise control without seeing the control group data.
AAA is all about changing people's behaviors. Even if these technologies show no increase in problems, they would still publish this story because they see a potential for improvement if people change. And they would always leave out the control group because they want to shock people.
In general, if a technology requires driver education to be effective, forget it in this country. The only question that matters is whether the statistics indicate there is a reduction in accidents with the technology. If there is, use the technology. The fact that some get killed who might not have without it is irrelevant. Only the average matters when looking for societal progress.
> the car should stop moving.
FYI, that's one of the more dangerous things you can do. You're quite likely to get rear-ended or T-boned. Some people's default reaction of stomping on the brakes whenever something unexpected happens is a leading cause of accidents.