Image generated from Meta AI
The world is moving, and the technological advancements are being recorded daily. One of the sectors that have witnessed innovations of different forms is the transportation sector. A time was it when animals were the popular modes of transportation. Fortunately, improvements have been recorded over the years, and we now have a sophisticated air transportation system. Innovations in rail transportation and electric cars are worth mentioning.
One of the latest innovations in road transportation in the past few years is self-driving vehicles. It was only recently that I watched a self-driving car in the movie. As amazing as it was, I did an analysis of the safety and the possible lack of having that emotional connection with the environment like human drivers do. After thoroughly taking a look at the features, I could not welcome the technology like other technological innovations.
Driving is not just an ordinary task. It is an act that has the emotional aspect in which a human driver connects with his surroundings. When a human is driving a car, he tends to connect with the happenings around him as he proceeds on the journey. A car being driven by a program can't take a decision outside what has been programmed into it. For instance, a human driver that drives through a road numerous times becomes familiar with the road. Subsequent navigation through the road becomes easier because of the increased level of familiarity. A self-driving car can't create that connection and familiarity.
Another important thing is that a human driver would handle emergency situations better than machines. Imagine a car in front of a self-driving car that develops a fault suddenly. The response of a human driver would be swifter and near spontaneous than that of a programmed driver. For these reasons and many more, I can't consider buying self-driving cars. It is a project that I don't believe in its safety.
Another major concern is the standard of roads in my town and state of residence. A car as sophisticated as a self-driving car requires a good road in a well-planned environment. All these things are lacking in my town of residence. Even if they are available, I would remain skeptical about boarding a vehicle without a human driver. One thing that I am sure that I can't do is buy a self-driving car. I prefer being in a car with a human driver.
Though I haven't been able to monitor the safety history of the car, I would most probably blame two people if the car encounters an accident. The first person is the manufacturer, and the second person is the buyer/owner of the car. The reason for blaming the two people is that I still don't understand what convinced a manufacturer to produce a self-driving car or a buyer to go for that choice. The only feature that can make me avoid blaming the manufacturer is when the car is produced with an almost absolute response to external stimuli. However, I doubt the possibility of this. No response to stimuli can be compared to that of a human.
Well, there is always room for improvement in every technology. I am not ruling out accepting self-driving cars in the future. But for now, I prefer to ride in a car with a human driver.