Uber suspends self-driving car tests after pedestrian death

[BogDog]

I was wondering who would be the first to perish, and when. Google is basically my neighbor, and I have seen their various configurations of self-driving cars running up and down my street and around town for several years, with Uber's appearing in the last few. Even though the cars seemed to be doing very well, you knew sooner or later something like this would happen. My condolences to all the loved ones of the victim.

Now, the next question is who will be the first cyclist to be struck! I ride my bikes everywhere.

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) -- Uber suspended all of its self-driving testing Monday after what is believed to be the first fatal pedestrian crash involving the vehicles.

The testing has been going on for months in the Phoenix area, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Toronto as automakers and technology companies compete to be the first with the technology.

Uber's testing was halted after police in a Phoenix suburb said one of its self-driving vehicles struck and killed a pedestrian overnight Sunday. The vehicle was in autonomous mode with an operator behind the wheel when a woman walking outside of a crosswalk was hit, Tempe police Sgt. Ronald Elcock said.

The woman, whose name hasn't been released, died of her injuries at a hospital.

[bogbud]

People will die in traffic accidents even in 100 years when everyone ownes an automatic car as long as they are completely oblivious about rules and are carelessly running on the streets. We will still have a much!!! lower number of accidents as a whole when the human factor which is responsible for almost all car/car-accidents is eliminated.

[Mynock]

The only fact that's been presented so far is that the pedestrian was crossing outside of a crosswalk, which generally means the pedestrian is at fault if struck. Jaywalking is illegal for a reason.

If KITT's retarded cousin weighs "X" and is moving at "Y" speed, that means there has to be "Z" distance needed to stop. If pedestrian "P" is closer than "Z", splooge. The most powerful computer in the world can't undo the laws of physics (yet).

I consider myself a driving enthusiast so in general I hate the idea of autonomous cars......but I have to admit being able to squeeze in an extra 45 minutes of sleep in on the way to work (or a quick nap on the way home) would be nice sometimes.....if the technology could be trusted that far.....and that's a BIG if.

[Fred588]

We must not jump to conclusions here about what happened and who or what was at fault. Ultimately, I think the true test with regard to the self-driving car in an incident such as this is whether or not a fully competent and alert human driver would be expected to have avoided the accident. As for the future perhaps it might evolve that there would be, in places, special lanes for autonomous vehicles. As the computers controlling such vehicles would have much faster reaction times than any human. They could also communicate with other such vehicles nearby (and not with things at a greater distance than might cause trouble). This might enable closer spacing and faster speeds, which would mean, of course, that the 45 minutes of extra sleep gets knocked down to 25.

For long distance travel I have always found it intriguing to consider whether cars might somehow use the rail system, either autonomously or by driving onto a railcar for towing.

The only fact that's been presented so far is that the pedestrian was crossing outside of a crosswalk, which generally means the pedestrian is at fault if struck. Jaywalking is illegal for a reason.

If KITT's retarded cousin weighs "X" and is moving at "Y" speed, that means there has to be "Z" distance needed to stop. If pedestrian "P" is closer than "Z", splooge. The most powerful computer in the world can't undo the laws of physics (yet).

I consider myself a driving enthusiast so in general I hate the idea of autonomous cars......but I have to admit being able to squeeze in an extra 45 minutes of sleep in on the way to work (or a quick nap on the way home) would be nice sometimes.....if the technology could be trusted that far.....and that's a BIG if.

[Mr Mudster]

Too bad it's not suspended permanently! I'm a technology junkie... always have been! It started with my 60-in-1 Radio Shack kit back in 1971 and continued through my TRS-80 Model 1 in 1980, my Intertec Superbrain QD computer in 1985 and into my LG G6 phone that I bought a little over a year ago.

But self-driving cars are an abomination! Cars are, by their very nature, human interactive machines! We can't even figure out how to make a phone with an autocorrect that works properly -- then how in the fuck are we going to make a car that can safely drive itself?!

It's just another way of spending money on useless things that won't make our lives any better. And some technology junkies like that. Me, hell no! If I want to catch a few extra zzzzzz's on the way to work I'll take the bus or train! But I won't do that, as I am the master of my own destiny! Therefore, give me the wheel and pedals and watch me go. And if your goddamned self-driving car gets in my way then my F-150 with the 32 inch tires will demonstrate to you why your utopia isn't as much fun as you thought it would be!

The opinions are my own, and do not represent those of snowflakes!

[Fred588]

Don't take offense but I remember a neighbor way back in the mid 60s who said pretty much the same thing about color TV.

Too bad it's not suspended permanently! I'm a technology junkie... always have been! It started with my 60-in-1 Radio Shack kit back in 1971 and continued through my TRS-80 Model 1 in 1980, my Intertec Superbrain QD computer in 1985 and into my LG G6 phone that I bought a little over a year ago.

But self-driving cars are an abomination! Cars are, by their very nature, human interactive machines! We can't even figure out how to make a phone with an autocorrect that works properly -- then how in the fuck are we going to make a car that can safely drive itself?!

It's just another way of spending money on useless things that won't make our lives any better. And some technology junkies like that. Me, hell no! If I want to catch a few extra zzzzzz's on the way to work I'll take the bus or train! But I won't do that, as I am the master of my own destiny! Therefore, give me the wheel and pedals and watch me go. And if your goddamned self-driving car gets in my way then my F-150 with the 32 inch tires will demonstrate to you why your utopia isn't as much fun as you thought it would be!

The opinions are my own, and do not represent those of snowflakes!

[Mynock]

I think it has a long way to go before it beomes something dependable. The biggest issue is how do you make something that obeys all traffic laws to the letter while having it interact with people who in general don't. Have fun riding in your autonomous vehicle on the PA turnpike doing the speed limit while everybody else is doing 90 and honking at you.

An engineer friend of mine brought up this point too: what decision is the car going to make when a collision is unavoidable? When (not if) they become more capable of things like swerving to avoid a collision, is the car going to decide driving you into a tree is better than hitting a pedestrian?

My biggest issue by far is that I'm a manual transmission guy, hate dogamatics with a passion, so good luck driving my car for me.

[Duncan Edwards]

Too bad it's not suspended permanently! I'm a technology junkie... always have been! It started with my 60-in-1 Radio Shack kit back in 1971 and continued through my TRS-80 Model 1 in 1980...

Wow...crazy similarities there. Sounds like we were separated at birth.

This self-driving thing is here and it's going to be commonplace sooner than you think. People get killed in accidents every day with drivers at the wheel nobody cares. The first time the insurance companies look at the data and see a fifty percent reduction in accidents with automation versus people you will have to pay a fortune for insurance on your old 2018 Toyota. Just a few years after that you won't even own a car if you live in a city. You'll hit an icon on your iPhone and a car will drive itself to you very quickly. You will get where you want to go and be charged automatically for what time you used the car. Makes perfect sense if you think about it because your automobile sits idle 90+ percent of the time. The rate of adoption on this technology will be scary in just a few years. YouTube is filled with videos like this now https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjJQuXzm2DU

...and soon you will see them from Cadillac. Say what you want about any of them but if GM, Toyota, and Volkswagen are buying into this then it's going to happen. Soon.

[BogDog]

Back to the case in topic, I noticed they show a damaged bicycle on the sidewalk. Perhaps she was a rider. I see no lights on the bike and the accident happened late at night, so this could be entirely her fault. We'll see.

[Mr Mudster]

This self-driving thing is here and it's going to be commonplace sooner than you think.

Probably not in my lifetime! Or, if it does happen, it will remain a niche technology and used by only people that probably had no business driving in the first place!

The first time the insurance companies look at the data and see a fifty percent reduction in accidents with automation versus people you will have to pay a fortune for insurance on your old 2018 Toyota.

That's possible. But if it does happen then I think the rate of uninsured motorists would increase by a large percentage. Right now the amount of uninsured is around 17%. And that number could double if rates go way up. Of course, I also see insurance as a scam... a form of legalized extortion! But, again, that's just my opinion!

You will get where you want to go and be charged automatically for what time you used the car.

And who will be cleaning the cum off the back seats because people decided to get frisky because the car drives itself?! LOL!

Say what you want about any of them but if GM, Toyota, and Volkswagen are buying into this then it's going to happen. Soon.

Or they will find out that the amount of money they wasted on a useless technology could have been netting them a lot higher profit if they had just designed an engine that would burn cleaner and more efficiently, without sacrificing horsepower. Look at what Ford has done with the EcoBoost engine! Who would have imagined putting a tiny 4-cylinder engine in a full-sized pickup, without losing the ability to tow 9,000 pounds?! And people are buying them like they never have before! This is where technology has brought great benefits. Screw battery/hybrid technology (which has been exposed by numerous places as being a technology that uses MORE natural resources to produce LESS power than conventional combustion engines!) and start focusing on something that really will make our lives, and the lives of future generations better!

Maybe then I'll go buy me one of those confounded newfangled color TVs!