The well-respected, former CEO of Hyundai Motor America, John Krafcik, was recently hired by Google to head up Google’s self-driving car program. This combined with the testing Google’s done on California streets and the green light to test in Texas means that an autonomous car could be right around the corner.
These cars run on technology called Google Chauffeur and have been in development for quite a few years. The cars have been seen trialling on the streets of Mountain View, California and they have been a little bit accident prone with a few fender benders and rear-endings. Google said in a blog psot, “’Our self-driving cars are being hit surprisingly often by other drivers who are distracted and not paying attention to the road.” I know we’d be distracted seeing a car driving with no driver!
These minor accidents can be seen as a big motivator for Google as Mr Krafik wrote in an email to Automotive News, “This technology can save thousands of lives, give millions of people greater mobility, and free us from a lot of the things we find frustrating about driving today. I can’t wait to get started.”
So other than avoiding accidents what excites you most about being owning a self-driving car? Getting into tight parking spots? Not waiting in traffic during school pick ups? Working whilst on the way to work?