What problem are autonomous vehicles solving?

[jesse_the_k]

The Access Board has this to say about itself:

The U.S. Access Board is a federal agency that promotes equality for people with disabilities through leadership in inclusive design and the development of accessibility guidelines and standards.

Starting in March of next year, they’ll be holding ZOOM hearings re: autonomous vehicles and disabled people.

If you’d like to chime in with your thoughts, sign up here:

https://www.access-board.gov/av/

My thoughts:

AV pizza robots have already blocked curb ramps.

AV navigation depends on a deep understanding of the typical streetscape. But "typical" is a notion, not a reality. Every streetscape has atypical elements. For 50 years, I’ve observed the corner of Park and University Avenue. When UW-Madison is in session, the typical behavior is chaotic.

Color me doubtful and dubious. What problem are AVs solving?

Comments

[peoriapeoriawhereart]

I don't live in a cycle delivery typical zone, though I think there has been some trike uptick in delivery, much as the tamale man hasn't been out as much.

Here Grubhub drivers might actually make less than their gas if they aren't careful, and the skin off the nose is the restaurant re:misdelivered food. (I don't know of any case that happened--it's more that drivers expect to be earning $x and then find they have to work way more hours to get to $x, which means they're maybe at minimum wage and wearing out their car. And the service scalping off the tips. Not sure how the taxes work for delivery, for waitstaff that would put them in the hole since they'd have to prove they didn't receive tips at the rate expected by the IRS.)

The usual dangers here are truckers driving under slept and now increasingly underfed. There's along with that drivers in trucks they don't know well and on routes they haven't been on before. Our streets aren't as uniformly marked as one might think (or are marked to be read in full daylight without the 'distraction' of speed or lane position.)

[jesse_the_k]

Our house is at the intersection of three streets and a very busy bike path -- it's a spaghetti street subdivision designed between the World Wars. My street has four blocks: one end is a circle numbered in the teens, next the 4100 block, then the 4000 block, then my 800 block.

Which is all to say: the newly-hired FedEx, UPS, and Amazon Prime trucks drive around here like yellow jackets at a picnic. ||; vroom, screech, buzz, screech, slam doors :||