Driverless Cars are Fast Approaching. This is What You Need to Know
- Eliott Armentrout
- Nov 8, 2016
- 2 min read
We have seen them on the big screen multiple times and often heard of them as a possibility of our future; now they might be a crucial aspect to our future as a society. Driverless cars catch viewers’ eyes on television, as they flip through the air and preform what seem to be impossible stunts. However are the prototypes being built in real life safe enough to be wandering the streets? Well there is an abundance of new studies and information that prove that these prototypes are indeed safe and dependable enough to be trusted out on the roads.
From the year 2009 to the present day, driverless cars have been tested by driving more than 750,000 miles on the road, and the amazing thing is that they managed to do this without a single accident.
Many people fear that driverless cars might be a burden to the road because they could potentially cause wrecks. What people don't seem to understand is that the advanced technology behind these cars make a wreck caused by them almost impossible. 90% of accidents on the roads are a result of human error, and driverless cars will successfully end this potential hazard. Some people might wonder how these cars have the ability to stop for a red light or understand when a light is turning a certain color, but the cars have actually been programmed to understand these colors and stop, slow down, or go when necessary. Another concern of the everyday citizen is that driverless cars might not be able to respond to human signals such as a crossing guard in place of a traffic light or a kid running out in the street. Though these concerns are valid, technology in these new vehicles make it possible to detect movement besides other automobiles and react to them.
A comment by the CEO of Tesla motors, Elon Musk, stated that driverless cars will promise less accidents and less fatalities. With that said, the facts and statistics of these prototypes are definitely proving to be safe even in the first stages of development.
Safety is a huge concern of driverless cars, but in this day and age we also need to increase fuel efficiency and even create new methods of power for automobiles. These driverless cars get fantastic gas mileage and some are even being made electric. Given that these automobiles have the ability to stop on a dime and react quicker that the human mind ever could, they are also able to drive just feet from each other without the risk of an accident. This will successfully lessen traffic and allow better gas mileage as a result of less stopping and accelerating.
Driverless cars might sound like a thing of the far future, but the reality is that they are right around the corner. Though this might sound frightening, these driverless cars will indeed make us all safer on the roads and also remove the hassle that goes with driving.
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