Driverless cars - legal implications

[Triple-S]

Have just heard on the news that more energy it to be put into testing driverless vehicles then getting them on our roads.
We hear the boasts that machines are less likely to fail than humans in some respects, so the Police knew who to interrogate when a woman was driven into on a pedestrian crossing near here recently. But what if the car had been driverless - I mean if there isn't a legal driver on board just who is to blame? If one stumbled and fell whilst on a travelator at say, Gatwick Airport, the airport authority own/operate the equipment.
If a car is driverless surely there should be a competant person in charge, simply so one knows who to sue after an accident!
An interesting can-of-worms I fear: what are your thoughts?

P

[The Thong]

I would imagine the Autononamous vehicles will have plenty of camera footage that can be reviewed by the law.

[DaveNP]

Given the time it took for them to enable even the testing of autonomous vehicles on public roads it's not unreasonable to expect they will think it through before just allowing them in general use. And doing a quick google search one finds the Vehicle Technology and Aviation Bill which covers the legal liability of the insurers and owners.
That deals with the legal implications, if you want to know who we can rail against in a hysterical blame culture you'll need to look at the Daily Mail or their ilk, doubtless any death due to a driverless car will receive large amounts of media coverage, vastly more than the average of 4 deaths on the roads yesterday, 4 today, 4 tomorrow and so on and on.

[green van man]

I fear the playing field will be skewed towards the driverless car. It's what the government want and will have no matter what.
There was also attempts to have 3 trucks in a train driving closely together so as to minimise drag, if a driven vehicle did it they would!d be guilty of tailgateing, but it's OK because it's technology.
It's all fine until it fails, how many times has your computer crashed? Even if they are fail safe and stop when the technology fails they are still a danger as they block the carriageway whereas hopefully the driven car would engage neutral and coast onto the verge.

They will come, but I will not be happy to see them.

Paul.

[Dippydog]

As I understand it the "road train" has been undergoing trials in {I think}Norway using two trucks for some time.Over here they're using three trucks but I suppose especially as technology progresses there's no reason the numbers couldn't be expanded.As the system stands at present all the trucks have drivers it is the lead truck that has command on speed,braking etc.while the other drivers are there for steering inputs.The basic idea is you'd have a road train running the motorway with each truck slipstreaming the other thereby cutting fuel useage and as a truck reaches the junction it needs to be off at it simply drops out of the train and continues on it's own way with its driver back in command.Whether this is a good idea or not time will tell,but like driverless cars they will happen.

[The Thong]

Originally Posted by green van man

I fear the playing field will be skewed towards the driverless car. It's what the government want and will have no matter what.
There was also attempts to have 3 trucks in a train driving closely together so as to minimise drag, if a driven vehicle did it they would!d be guilty of tailgateing, but it's OK because it's technology.
It's all fine until it fails, how many times has your computer crashed? Even if they are fail safe and stop when the technology fails they are still a danger as they block the carriageway whereas hopefully the driven car would engage neutral and coast onto the verge.

They will come, but I will not be happy to see them.

Paul.

That’s the problem isn’t it? Unless there’s an operative on board (not sure driver covers the position anymore), who going to raise the alarm while it clogs up the motorway? I can’t see the trucks being completely unmanned though for security reasons alone, the operative will be a Tech who might be able to fix minor issues if the system fails etc.
So going back to autonomous cars, I watched is clip about Uber’s test area that’s using Autonomous XC90’s and one thing stood out to me. One of the tests they do is pushing a crash dummy out in front of it causing it to stop..... I foresee pedestrians just walking out in front of Autono cars because they know it’ll stop, the lemming generation starts here. Ok, I might be over thinking things here but knowing what some people are like, it wouldn’t surprise me.

Is this bright future of Autono cars really really going to be what people expect?

TT

[biggbn]

One could turn this thread on its head and suggest it is perfectly legal, and deemed safe, to turn an under qualified moron who would disprove Darwinian selection by their very existence loose in a car solo ten seconds after they have passed what was always, and remains, a fairly minimal test that displays fairly minimal levels of competence. These levels of competence are then never checked, other road users and soft targets being expected to be the yardstick for ability.....


Oops, dunno where that rant came from.....

[ThePurplePanther]

With regards to the above point of the lemming generation walking out in front of them (love the phrase btw, going to use it), with the amount of cameras and sensors on a self driving car a case could be able to be made for illegal and willful obstruction of a highway. Few high profile cases should kill the urge to do something so stupid.

Failing that a combination of Googles fly paper (https://www.engadget.com/2016/05/20/...uman-flypaper/) and a 90mph trip around the block should suffice to deter individuals... ;-)

[green van man]

It's not as bad as some places gbn, eldest daughter had an auto licence when she moved to Bangkok, autos out there are silly money so she took a Thai driving test to get the manual driving added to her categories.
Turned up at the test centre and sat through a 3 hour lecture in Thai that she understood perhaps one word in five and there was no interpretation service. Lecture over they proceed to the car park and drive a very battered Kia around some cones. Lo and behold she has passed, 6 people failed, 2 of whom climed into their cars and drove home.
Now she can exchange her Thai licencefor a British one when she returns home and can hire a car on it at any time in the UK.
As she said it was a joke and having experienced Bangkok traffic it would seem most went through the same test.
Interestingly the traffic lights have a count down from 30 seconds as the lights change, it's like a grand pre start every time, add in the fact that taxi drivers work 23 hours a day and chew a narcotic leaf to stay awake while beliving in the budest mantra of if it's not my day to die then no matter what I do I will not die, traveling in Bangkok and indeed thailand generaly can be an interesting experience.

Toyota hi lux converted into a bus with side facing bench seats, 20 people in it, along with their luggage, 4 hanging off the back and 3+ the driver in the cab, when the driver stops to pick up a Thai woman and child, woman joins the 4 hanging on the back and child is accommodated between the driver and the door.

It sure was an interesting visit.

Paul.

[T5R92011]

What happens when a driverless car performs a hit and run?