If 90 percent of car accidents are caused by human error, might it make sense to take the human variable out of driving? Car companies are getting closer each year to making this a reality. Although there is still a lot of development, testing, and cost reduction that must take place before the road is filled with driverless vehicles, crash prevention technology is already starting to reduce the number of car accidents on the road today.
Safety experts say that the technology that warns drivers before they depart from their lane and can stop a car before it rear-ends another vehicle has resulted in fewer accidents with those vehicles. Now, car companies are hoping completely autonomous driving vehicles are only a decade away from hitting showroom floors in San Antonio and across the world.
While the first vehicles of this kind will likely need to still have a driver monitoring what is going on with the vehicle. One issue car companies will work on is ensuring that drivers will still be somewhat attentive while behind the wheel on San Antonio roads.
Currently, numerous car companies are testing prototypes, and technology companies are working on software and hardware to make these cars aware of their surroundings.
While driverless cars and a car-accident-free world may still be a few decades away, new safety technology is already saving lives and preventing accidents. Until car accidents are a thing of the past, people sill need to be attentive while driving. Putting down phones and watching the road can help prevent car accidents in San Antonio.
Source: MIT Technology Review, “Driverless Cars Are Further Away Than You Think,” Will Knight, Oct. 22, 2013