Other News: The Sky Is Blue - IIHS Study Shows People Don't Understand Driver's Aids

[RevolverRob]

https://www.autoblog.com/2019/06/20/...on-iihs-study/

Highlights:

People weren't given the name of the brand for this section, and were instead told to answer the questions about Autopilot (Tesla), Traffic Jam Assist (Audi and Acura), Super Cruise (Cadillac), Driving Assistant Plus (BMW) and ProPilot Assist (Nissan).

A huge 48 percent of respondents thought it OK to take your hands off the wheel while using Autopilot. Additionally, 6 percent thought it safe to take a nap with Autopilot active...Interestingly, only 27 percent of people surveyed think it's alright to take your hands off the wheel using Cadillac's Super Cruise, and that's a hands-free system.

It found a couple different bits of information eluded most of the study's participants. Most people "struggled to understand what was happening when the system didn't detect a vehicle ahead because it was initially beyond the range of detection." Also, many were unable to identify when lane centering was inactive.

Not surprising that people do not understand what these various systems do or how they work. Most folks don't know how their cellphones work. Add in the inappropriate and misleading marketing attempts by companies (looking at you Tesla) to sell these systems and it's just one disaster after another waiting to happen.

I've long been an advocate for better public transit infrastructure, because people suck at driving. And I'm a strong advocate for autonomous cars, because people suck at driving. Since my real desire - strengthening the educational and driving standards to become a licensed driver - seems to be all but a pipe-dream here in the US. Autonomy and public transit offer the potential to reduce stupidity on the road by a significant percentage and make it easier for those us who don't view driving as a chore, but rather a privilege, to enjoy it.

But these attempts at quasi-automated systems that are poorly understood and marketed are only going to lead to setbacks and general distrust of the systems, when failures occur. I don't know if I have a good answer to this problem, I hate regulation, but it may be in the best interest of folks for NHTSA to establish a set of naming/performance 'guidelines' for MFGs to follow that allow a clearer understanding of what the systems do and what is and is not equivalent among them.

Imagine if we called ABS or airbags different things between MFGs, that would make it more difficult to understand what was and was not equivalent in features and safety.

[Yung]

I've long been an advocate for better public transit infrastructure, because people suck at driving. And I'm a strong advocate for autonomous cars, because people suck at driving. Since my real desire - strengthening the educational and driving standards to become a licensed driver - seems to be all but a pipe-dream here in the US. Autonomy and public transit offer the potential to reduce stupidity on the road by a significant percentage and make it easier for those us who don't view driving as a chore, but rather a privilege, to enjoy it.

How would you reconcile this concept with Americans living outside urban centers?

[mtnbkr]

How would you reconcile this concept with Americans living outside urban centers?

The UK manages to do it. Granted, they're a smaller nation, but in equivalent trips they have better and more options. Maybe we need to stop viewing public transportation as something the poors do or as something that is worthless if it doesn't turn a profit and accept it as the quality of life improving service it can be. Because of the crappy public transportation infrastructure, driving around NoVA is just about impossible. It also keeps people clustered together instead of allowing them to spread out (once you get 30-odd miles away from WashDC, the population thins out considerably and land becomes cheaper, but it isn't feasible to live there because that's a 2-3hr commute by car).

Chris

[LittleLebowski]

The UK manages to do it. Granted, they're a smaller nation, but in equivalent trips they have better and more options. Maybe we need to stop viewing public transportation as something the poors do or as something that is worthless if it doesn't turn a profit and accept it as the quality of life improving service it can be. Because of the crappy public transportation infrastructure, driving around NoVA is just about impossible. It also keeps people clustered together instead of allowing them to spread out (once you get 30-odd miles away from WashDC, the population thins out considerably and land becomes cheaper, but it isn't feasible to live there because that's a 2-3hr commute by car).

Chris

I don’t drive in NoVA. If it’s more than 20 mins from my house, I don’t do it.

[JAD]

It works in other places very specifically because of fuel cost. Put a $5/gal extra tax on regular, and fund trains and busses. Put the same tax on diesel and watch the economy grind to a complete halt.

If we had the will and a government we could trust, we could effect mass transit very quickly. Diesel goods transport isn’t going anywhere.

[RevolverRob]

How would you reconcile this concept with Americans living outside urban centers?

You don't.

~13% of Americans live in rural areas. That's simply not enough population to worry about in this regard. If you live in a rural area, you'll still have your vehicle - potentially with autonomous driving technology - to get you where you need to go. Bonus, because you'll live in areas where there isn't significant infrastructural spending on public transit, you should have lower taxes.

The remaining 87% live in urban or suburban areas where infrastructure can be built to reach them and frankly needs to be.

Public transit is not a wholesale solution to transport in the U.S. regardless of what certain people would have you believe. There remain and will remain, significantly remote areas accessible only by a person-operated vehicle with an internal combustion engine. At least until electric hot-swappable batteries have ranges measured in several hundred miles and they do not way a literal ton, such that you can carry a spare. Since that isn't the case, IC powered, human-driven, vehicles will remain extant.

But ultimately that isn't the point. The overarching goal is to take the 87% of the population that are crammed into less than 1/4 of the country's actual landmass and put them on a path to ease congestion, reduce accidents, and get them the fuck outta the way. It's disturbingly like dealing with cattle. But if you've ever gotten onto an L-train, a BART train, or a NY Subway at rush hour - you know that's exactly what it is. A herd moving on and off in cattle cars. All we're trying to do here is get them on the train and reduce congestion.

BTW - Rideshare a commonly touted solution to congestion is not a solution. If I could, I would kick every member of Uber and Lyft's boards right in the junk. Collectively, those two companies have done more to increase congestion and decrease public transit use in the past five years, than anyone could have dreamed of. Literally every third car I see in Chicago is an Uber/Lyft - recent studies indicate congestion increase in Chicago by double-digit percentage points over the past 3 years, ALL of it attributal to Uber/Lyft.

[RevolverRob]

It works in other places very specifically because of fuel cost. Put a $5/gal extra tax on regular, and fund trains and busses. Put the same tax on diesel and watch the economy grind to a complete halt.

If we had the will and a government we could trust, we could effect mass transit very quickly. Diesel goods transport isn’t going anywhere.

Not quite, but almost what the state of Illinois is doing to drivers. The gasoline tax doubles from 19 cents to 38 cents per gallon and the diesel tax jumps from 21.5 cents to 45.5 cents per gallon on July 1.

Reminds me, I need to make sure I fill the car full prior to July 1. This tax increase will likely cause gas prices to rise some 60 cents at the pump. We're already at $3.50/gallon.

[JAD]

Not quite, but almost what the state of Illinois is doing to drivers. The gasoline tax doubles from 19 cents to 38 cents per gallon and the diesel tax jumps from 21.5 cents to 45.5 cents per gallon on July 1.

Reminds me, I need to make sure I fill the car full prior to July 1. This tax increase will likely cause gas prices to rise some 60 cents at the pump. We're already at $3.50/gallon.

And in return you have cheap, clean, safe mass transportation outside of your urban centers.

[RevolverRob]

And in return you have cheap, clean, safe mass transportation outside of your urban centers.

Uhh. You're kidding, right?

All of these since Dec. 30 2018:

Police Seek Suspects After Mob of Teens Attacks Red Line Riders

Police Issue Warning After Sexual Assaults on CTA Train, in Station

Woman Pulled To Ground, Choked On CTA Green Line

Girl Sexually Assaulted On CTA Blue Line Train, Police Say

Not just the CTA either. The METRA Commuter rail since Jan 1 2019:

Police: 10-Year-Old Sexually Assaulted By Man On Metra Tracks

Metra Employee Attacked By Passenger

Metra Train Catches Fire at Union Station

Investigation Continues Into Deadly Metra Collision

___

In theory that's how mass-transit works. In reality, it remains incredibly dangerous, old, in serious need of investment to repair and refine infrastructure, and more policing. In reality, gas tax in Illinois does nothing to improve mass transit, it's all going to pay for our equally shitty roads and bankrupt pension funds and corrupt politicians. Remember, this is a state where 3 of the last 5 governors have been indicted for corruption. A sitting Chicago Alderman is currently under indictment for 13 charges of fraud and racketeering by the feds. Taxes here are just a way of bleeding people dry.

In order for things to actually work out, corruption oversight would be needed. In the meantime, autonomous cars remain one of the few potential solutions to congestion problems. Because they do not directly involve local governments. And as long as radar and GPS-based systems continue to develop independently, there is little a local government can do (except ban the usage of such systems). It'll be hard to tax them in a meaningful way. The thing I'd like to see done is the NHTSA simply say to the carmakers, "Yo, we dig the tech. Can we standardize the names and general performance of each of these features. So we can educate buyers/drivers on what the systems are and are capable of. Thanks."

All that said, I don't blame anyone who doesn't use public transit here in Chicago, I don't. I drive everywhere, because the CTA is fucking dangerous.

[JAD]

Uhh. You're kidding, right? .

I giggled a lot when I wrote it; and then I added, “outside of urban centers” because that’s really farcical.