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UK to allow driverless cars on public roads in January

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Re: UK to allow driverless cars on public roads in January

#61

Post by CamperBob2 »

TeMPOraL wrote: post #54
CamperBob2 wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Technological complexity of subject matter has yet to present any serious roadblock, or cause any significant change, in the prosecution of the law. Ridiculous. To cite only one counterexample, self-driving cars will make the controversy over the EU's "right to be forgotten" law look like a polite discussion over a beer. That said, the problems are solvable and we'll all ultimately be better off for facing them.

>> has yet to present any serious roadblock > To cite only one counterexample, self-driving cars will make... Hey, something's not right... ;). Please clarify your point with a non-circular example.

I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're asking.

Re: UK to allow driverless cars on public roads in January

#62

Post by dm2 »

Someone1234 wrote: post #9
joncrocks wrote: post #2

UK to allow tests of driverless cars on public roads to start in January. In the same way that has already begun in the rest of the world. Same legal/insurance issues stand (as elsewhere) and are likely the bigger barrier to adoption.

Since there are a total of zero commercially available driverless cars, was that distinction really required? Nowhere in the world has permitted non-test driverless cars because non-test driverless cars aren't a thing yet. The whole "rest of the world" remark seems like smug condescension. Which is a little odd as only a small handful of places even allow test-cars to be run on public roads. Plus isn't this a welcome…

Are you saying that the UK has a grid pattern and wider streets? I had always heard that the UK had narrow streets in many places, but that's just from watching Top Gear.

Here is a Google autonomous vehicle navigating Lombard Street in San Francisco: http://youtu.be/eXeUu_Y6WOw?t=1m34s

Re: UK to allow driverless cars on public roads in January

#63

Post by dm2 »

bdamm wrote: post #38
purringmeow wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That occupation will disappear, save for a few high-end human driver services, IMO. After the taxis come the trucks. I am quite certain shipping companies will be the quick ditch humans. After all, this means no more travel expenses & salaries, no more breaks, probably automatic unloading too! Goods will get cheaper, although hundreds of thousands of people will be out of work. I am scared.

I seriously doubt that truck drivers are going out of business any time soon. First of all, there's a massive fleet of trucks requiring drivers, and replacement trucks are expensive. Second of all, truck drivers also serve as a security guard. Even if we have self-driving trucks, I imagine they'll have a chaperone for a long time yet. I expect that trucks driven by a human-computer team will be safer than trucks driv…

There would certainly be some upfront cost to making tractor-trailers autonomous but they would save an expensive employee per truck, the trucks would arrive faster and more reliably, and they would save in fuel costs (optimal driving).

They would need to setup a way for the trucks to refuel, just an attendant at the truck-stop that would be paid a small amount for refueling them, or maybe a new kind of pump that would automatically fuel the trucks when they pulled up to them.

Re: UK to allow driverless cars on public roads in January

#64

Post by newaccountfool »

bdamm wrote: post #38
purringmeow wrote: post #23

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That occupation will disappear, save for a few high-end human driver services, IMO. After the taxis come the trucks. I am quite certain shipping companies will be the quick ditch humans. After all, this means no more travel expenses & salaries, no more breaks, probably automatic unloading too! Goods will get cheaper, although hundreds of thousands of people will be out of work. I am scared.

I seriously doubt that truck drivers are going out of business any time soon. First of all, there's a massive fleet of trucks requiring drivers, and replacement trucks are expensive. Second of all, truck drivers also serve as a security guard. Even if we have self-driving trucks, I imagine they'll have a chaperone for a long time yet. I expect that trucks driven by a human-computer team will be safer than trucks driv…

The theft part is massive, if you had a truckload full of computer parts travelling down the motorway at 3am when it's dead. What's to stop some gang with tire traps. Bam! vehicle is over and they have 30 mins to loot before an error is realised.

Re: UK to allow driverless cars on public roads in January

#65

Post by TeMPOraL »

CamperBob2 wrote: post #61
TeMPOraL wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> has yet to present any serious roadblock > To cite only one counterexample, self-driving cars will make... Hey, something's not right... ;). Please clarify your point with a non-circular example.

I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're asking.

I read your comment as following:

> ... it has yet to happen ...

Ridiculous. To cite only one counterexample, it will happen.

Re: UK to allow driverless cars on public roads in January

#66

Post by avz »

newaccountfool wrote: post #64
bdamm wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I seriously doubt that truck drivers are going out of business any time soon. First of all, there's a massive fleet of trucks requiring drivers, and replacement trucks are expensive. Second of all, truck drivers also serve as a security guard. Even if we have self-driving trucks, I imagine they'll have a chaperone for a long time yet. I expect that trucks driven by a human-computer team will be safer than trucks driv…

The theft part is massive, if you had a truckload full of computer parts travelling down the motorway at 3am when it's dead. What's to stop some gang with tire traps. Bam! vehicle is over and they have 30 mins to loot before an error is realised.

This is possible in the current configuration, too. In fact, it may be easier to compel a human driver to keep quiet than a networked onboard computer relentlessly feeding speed, position, tire pressure and other telemetry to some sort of remote monitoring facility.

Re: UK to allow driverless cars on public roads in January

#69

Post by CamperBob2 »

TeMPOraL wrote: post #65
CamperBob2 wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're asking.

I read your comment as following: > ... it has yet to happen ... Ridiculous. To cite only one counterexample, it will happen.

Correct, that's what I said. The OP claimed that technical implementation problems were not considered a stumbling block for legislation, and I mentioned the "right to be forgotten" mess as a counterexample, where a fundamentally unfair, unworkable law has created a new human right out of thin air, one that's causing a lot of trouble for Google and other search engine providers.

Re: UK to allow driverless cars on public roads in January

#70

Post by 6d0debc071 »

georgemcbay wrote: post #48
Buttons840 wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's true. I think of turning right at a crosswalk where some pedestrian is really anxious for their turn to walk, so they're standing right on the edge of the curb. I always pay careful attention to them and rely on my human intuition of body language, eye contact, etc, until I feel comfortable that they're going to remain on the edge of the curb instead of steeping out in front of me during my turn. A robot can't…

A robot should always assume the person might suddenly enter the street regardless of body language or other clues and drive at speeds that allow safe stopping if that occurs. A person driving should do the same. I don't see the discrepancy.

> A robot should always assume the person might suddenly enter the street regardless of body language or other clues and drive at speeds that allow safe stopping if that occurs.

> A person driving should do the same.

At what range? If you assume someone could always jump out in front of you, and that running them down will always be unacceptable, you'll be doing a handful of miles an hour whenever there are humans around. In practice I doubt too many people are in favour of taking safety to that extreme.

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