Posted on 03/20/2018 3:24:24 AM PDT by grundle
Two days ago, a self driving Uber car crashed into and killed a woman in Arizona. The car had a backup human driver behind the wheel who had the ability to take control at any time. The woman who got killed was walking in the street but was not in a crosswalk.
In my opinion, the government should get a warrant from a judge to require Uber to release its camera footage of the collision to the public. As long as we don’t get to see the footage, we can only speculate as to who was at fault.
If it was in fact Uber’s fault, then the public has a right to know, and Uber should be required to pay $10 million to the family of the victim. (I also believe that anyone who fakes such an accident in order to commit insurance fraud should get 10 years in jail for insurance fraud, in addition to whatever punishment they get for killing someone.)
If it’s the pedestrian’s fault, then knowing this information would prevent people form mistakenly thinking that self driving cars are more dangerous than they actually are.
So far, Uber’s self driving cars have a death rate of one death per approximately 2 million miles. By comparison, human driven cars have one death for approximately every 100 million miles. These are just rough numbers – they are not exact. And the sample size for Uber’s self driving cars is too small. However, from what we know, so far, Uber’s self driving cars have a death rate per mile which is approximately 50 times that of human driven cars. If this death was the fault of the pedestrian, then it doesn’t give any reason to be afraid of self driving cars. But if the death is Uber’s fault, then it’s a sign that something is seriously wrong with Uber’s self driving cars, even though the sample size is small. In cases of life and death, even one death is too many when only 2 million miles have been driven. The sample size is small, but that doesn’t change the fact that a person is dead.
I hope you never had an accident using cruise control.
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That’s a good comparison in this case.
“Absolve”? I’m not sure why you seem to be absolving the victim of any personal responsibility for their own welfare.
On a conceptual/philosophical level trying to apply conservative principles, I generally believe individuals need to take much greater responsibility for their outcomes, rather than rely on courts, judges and trial lawyers decide those boundaries.
Automatically siding with victims and absolving them of responsibility seems like a left-wing perspective on societal order.
In this case it seem like the pedestrian was a victim of her own poor choices, and I’m not ready to blame the Uber just because it’s Uber, or blame Autonomous Driving just because it’s Autonomous Driving.
The pedestrian was jaywalking and stepped into the path of a car travelling at 35 mphp? The question is the distance involved. Cars hit pedestrians every day in such situations.
No criminal case, but there will be a civil one....
OK thought I heard 35. Thanks!
What was the woman thinking, getting in the way of a driverless car. Not too smart on her part.
Uber should explain its self-admitted problem with bicycles and bike lanes. It should not let its cars operate near either.
Uber faces charges for murder, it won’t release the video showing its car running down a little old lady without slowing down or braking.
Consider they have known problem with bicycles and bike lanes (apparently make illegal turns); they ran down the lady without slowing down or breaking. Again, without slowing down or breaking. The police have reviewed the video and pointed that fact out.
Criminal charges relating to negligence, a coverup, doubtful for murder.
Uber should get its clock cleaned in civil court, however, and that might do more good in terms of public safety.
OK thought I heard 35. Thanks!
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The police seem to be saying 35. A local newspaper is saying 45.
The laws of physics won't be denied. You can't stop that mass on a dime. Even with the best programming and sensors, you are still subject to the real world, and people stepping out in front of vehicles that can't stop in time is one of them.
To that end, I'm not saying that is what happened here. The video would certainly help identify the cause.
I do it all the time. With today's smooth cars, do you know how easy it is to drift up from 35 to 40 or 45 without realizing it? I often set the cruise at 35 if the traffic is light enough to warrant it, and the area is a known speed trap.
Is that for certain? When I read the article yesterday, it gave the intersection near where the wreck occurred in Tempe. I think is was Mill Road and Curry Road. I spent some time on Google Maps Street View, and noted nothing less than 45 MPH on those roads in that area. That doesn't mean things haven't changed since the street view images were taken, though. Also, there were some stretches of road that I couldn't find a speed limit sign within a 1/2 mile of the intersection, but the signs I did find were all labeled 45 MPH.
FWIW, I only use my cruise on limited access highways.
Was this some kind of a test run by Uber, anyone know? In any case, I hope to heaven whichever bureaucrats permitted this didn’t protect Uber from civil suits.
Before I got my license, we lost a family member to a high-speed MVA. Probably due largely to that, I don't treat my car like a toy. So, no, I don't know how easy it is because I don't drive like that.
Sounds like the Tesla that ran into the semi truck crossing the road in front of it. The Tesla systems didn’t “see” the truck apparently due to the sun being behind it.
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