Sonafrank

Grant Sonafrank

Malcolm Campbell

UWRT 1104

April 4, 2019

How self-driving vehicles will Impact You

Self-driving cars are soon to become common on roads across the USA, and they will

impact everyone one way or the other. These cars have different levels of how they are or

aren’t driver dependent, as this level of dependency lessens the changes to society will become

more and more visible. Autonomous vehicles that are already on the market have been tested

to be safer than traditional cars. These cars will impact people more indirectly than physically

when they become mainstream. Autonomous vehicles and their manufacturers will create new

industries and opportunities for business as well as eliminate a few trades. These cars will

change the infrastructure of cities and high traffic areas to better accommodate them by having

different places to park and store them. Lastly, autonomous cars will have the greatest impact

of how people and things are moved across the country.

Self-driving cars are currently in the early stages of development and still require human

input. But as time passes and technology advances, they will become independent of their

drivers. In an article from the Union of Concerned Scientist, they explain and tell the difference

between all of levels advancement in autonomous vehicles. Level 0 being a car where all

systems are controlled by humans, level 1 entails cruise control and automatic braking, level 2
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offers at least two simultaneous systems such as steering and accelerating but still needs a

person’s input for safe operation. In level three the cars are able to safely operate under

specific conditions but the driver is expected to take over when alerted. Level 4 is a fully

autonomous car in almost all situations, level 5 is the level where a driver is never needed and

the car can safely operate in any situation. Once levels 4 and 5 are achieved there will become

legal obstacles to tackle such as does a person need a driver’s license to “operate a car”. This

will become a legal issue also because when a car is able to drive itself the DMV will not

generate as much money for the state which might lead to taxes on those who own

autonomous vehicles.

The leaders in self-driving car technology are currently Tesla, Google, Cruise animation

and a few more. These companies are working on technologies that will speed up the process

of creating these vehicles as well. Cruise animation is advertising that hey will be able to

provide the safest experience when it comes to self-driving cars, on their webpage cruise

animation tells about how their cars are able to outperform any other autonomous vehicle in

unpredictable situations such as heavy rainfall, high wind, and reacting to people who drive

recklessly. According to Cadie Thompson from business insider tesla has some large goals for

the next few years, including a “Gigafactory”, one thousand-kilometer ranges, one hundred

percent autonomy, and producing a half million cars each year by 2020. Tesla’s Gigafactory is

being created to supply all of Tesla’s battery demands from just a few concentrated locations,

this is a great achievement because it will speed up the development of new cars and become a

monopoly on the batteries that go in its cars so that customers will have no choice but to buy

the replacement batteries from Tesla. Googles self-driving car technology started out as just a
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project but was developed into a company, Waymo, after they realized the significance of the

technology to future development. The significance to the development of self-driving cars will

be as much financial as it will be technological. When self-driving cars are made available

people everywhere will just need to get their hands on one, this is why it is seen a race to who

can do it first, because the first company to successful make one will without a doubt be

making an absurd profit. Waymo is working on a few types’ technology related to self-driving

cars also. They have modified a Chrysler Pacifica to be autonomous as well as develop their

own car from scratch. Waymo has also had a few recent announcements about their projects,

according to Andrew Krok a writer from road show by CNET, Waymo announced that it will

outfit its car in Detroit bringing a new focus on American car manufacturing. Another article

from Kirsten Korosec, a writer for tech crunch, says that Waymo has also looked into a self-

driving service and app that will act similar to uber, they are currently doing testing on the

function of the app and system of transport on public roads in phoenix. Nokia has partnered

with Mercedes-Benz to get in on the self-driving cars race, they have made advancements in

smart maps to aid in the process of deciding the fastest routes to the intended destination.

One trend in the development of self-driving cars is that they are geared towards being

electric or hybrid powered cars. Electric cars are becoming popular because of the growing

concern for the environment. A writer who simply goes by the name Hugh wrote in the

GetGreenNow blog explains how these vehicles are better for the environment, he says that

the car will decrease greenhouse gas emissions from not needing gas. Not needing gas will

chain react into less need for drilling for oil, which is a process that can lead to catastrophic

amounts of pollution and harm to surrounding environments. This concern is not just for saving
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the planet but also for business and monetary purposes as well. The California vehicle rebate

project is providing incentives on driving electric vehicle such as traffic lanes for single

occupancy electric cars to bypass heavy traffic, another incentive they have is to give customer

rebates based on the use of electricity in their vehicles. Since California is giving out these

motivators the market for it is growing rapidly. The change to electric also benefits the

development of self-driving cars because it opens up a lot of space inside cars when the gas

components are not required. Tesla seems to be leading the charge for electric powered cars as

well, tesla’s cars are some of the most advanced in their power output in electric cars.

Self-driving cars are going to open up new forms of business such as installation of

charging ports at homes, places of business, and even “gas” stations (assuming that there are

still many around). When self-driving cars are main stream taxi’s driven by real people will

become a thing of the past, uber and lift style apps will become a huge business because the

owners of companies will not need to pay drivers. Paying the drivers of these cars is the biggest

expense for these companies, not needing to pay this will leave a bigger profit margin at first

but after some competition the prices for commute will be lowered. Another opportunity for

business will be construction of parking decks for these cars. An article by Jack Stewart a writer

for Wired.com stated some facts about traffic and parking and why self-driving cars might help

the problem. He states that in major cities as many as a third of all the cars driving are just

looking for parking, autonomous vehicles will not need to drive around aimlessly looking for a

spot they will be able to just know where a spot is or if it is not too far away they could just

drive themselves back home. Drivers will be able to let their cars know how far away they need

to park to, once apps are invented that control the cars owners will have the option to tell the
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cars an estimated time until they are needed again so that the cars may drive to the pickup

spot. When the cars are driving to the pickup spots “drivers” can also have presets for when

they enter the cars such as seat positions, temperature, or even music. The parking decks of the

future might be much bigger than the ones we know today because they don’t need to have a

close proximity to the store or business. The deck will not need to be as close to the buildings

because the owners can just send a message to their car to wait for them outside when they

are ready to be picked up. These parking decks might also be a way to generate revenue by

scanning the license plate of a car when it enters and charging a fee to use it instead of the car

having to drive itself all the way back home.

Self-driving cars will change the way city planners create new ideas for traffic patterned

and places to route care around businesses. Since autonomous vehicles will be able to drop

their owners off when they need to go somewhere businesses and store will have like pickup

lines to keep the flow of traffic consistent. Another change that could occur to city planning due

to parking would be the amount of space freed up by unused parking lots, this space will be

more real estate for businesses and development. After the introduction of self-driving

technology, it could be applied to busses and public transportation which would make busses

more logical for the common person. when busses are made into autonomous vehicles it will

save the bus companies money by not needing to pay the drivers, the money that will be saved

will go directly into making the bus system faster and more effective. The common person who

lives in or around a city will be more likely to take these buses because they will be moving

faster and more effectively.

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Autonomous cars will change the way that people and things move around the country

will by allowing drivers to sleep in cars and not need to stop during a long-distance commute.

Since people (mostly truckers) won’t have to sleep or even be needed the transport of objects

much faster. After the ability to transport goods across the country fast construction materials

will be moved quicker to the construction site which in turn will accelerate the process of

updating current infrastructure. Updating current infrastructure will be a tall task to handle, in

big cities like New York remodeling will be difficult due to the lack of room to build or tear

things down. Angelo young, a writer for salon, thinks that this need for updated infrastructure

will slow the development of self-driving cars because they will depend on the infrastructure

that they drive in and around. The infrastructure will try to adapt to accept these cars but as

“smart roads” become built the technology will shift to processing what the roads know and

adjust the path or route accordingly. Since there will be a need for a change in city planning

urban areas will be changed greatly and have a need to be centered around locations that offer

places to charge cars. The way that autonomous cars are looking there is also the trend of cars

becoming hybrids and solely powered on electricity.

To get a better understanding of how autonomous cars will change the future it is

important to find out how they work. self-driving cars have a multitude of ways that they

navigate themselves on the roads. Geico’s website does a great job of stating the different way

that autonomous vehicles work. although Geico is not involved in the development of this

technology being an automotive company they do their best to inform their customers and sell

whatever they can. Autonomous cars have GPS software to help find the fastest route to the

destination, but this will not aid them in avoiding collisions, these vehicles have many sensors
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scattered about the car that process the information quickly sending it to computer that will

make the car act in a way that has been preprogrammed into the car. The sensors are not so

sensitive to shape and distance that the software is able to tell the difference between

motorcycles, bicycles, pedestrians, and animals crossing the road. After the sensors send that

input to the software for analysis the speed of the car and the object are taken in to

consideration and a response will be implemented. This process of reading the surroundings

and reacting accordingly to them occurs continuously so that the car is never caught off guard,

avoiding all collisions that can be avoided. One of the problems that innovators of these cars

are facing is the weather. Rains, snow, sleet and other types of weather that obstruct the view

of the sensors cause trouble, the companies are experimenting in ways to combat these

obstructions by having devices that clean the sensors and incorporating the use of sonar,

because sonar will send out pulses that only bounce off of solid objects and will not react to the

elements as it does to solid objects like other cars.

There are a few concerns about self-driving cars in terms of safety. One concern is that

how will a car be programmed in the case of if a car should hit a pedestrian or wreck itself to

save the pedestrian. In a business insider article from Lindsay Dodgson she explains how

Mercedes is planning to let their car hit the pedestrian in every situation. According to an

interview with Christoph Von Hugo, he says that when the car chooses to crash the crash is

unpredictable and has a chance at hurting both the pedestrian and the passenger, so his theory

is to guarantee the safety of the passenger so that at the least one life is saved. many people

feel that this is harsh and should be reconsidered because of the scenario when kids’ lives are

at stake. There has also been a wreck that caused some controversy in a Tesla, Alice Klein a
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writer for the webpage NewScientist, explains the dilemma of a John Brown in 2016. John

Brown was driving on a Florida highway when he put his Tesla into autopilot mode and was

killed in a car wreck. The issues with this incident was that the tesla did not see a large truck

and plowed right into it, which is an accident that any driver would see coming and avoid.

Tesla’s response to the incident was that this was there first fatality in one hundred thirty

million miles of driving compared to the average rate of ninety-four million miles in driver-

controlled cars.

Due to self-driving cars doing a job that most people do every day they will save people

time allowing them to become more productive. This increase of productivity will become a

loop in the development of new technology, speeding up the creation of new technology. Self-

driving cars will be a catalyst for new innovation and discovery aiding the process of remodeling

and creating new city plans, jobs and even change the culture of what cars mean to people.

Most importantly autonomous vehicles will stimulate the economy be introducing new

industries and business opportunities throughout future advancements. Whether you like it, or

not self-driving cars will impact you and the rest of the world.
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References:

“California's New Problem: Driverless Car Crashes.” Governing,

www.governing.com/topics/transportation-infrastructure/will-california-more-

closely-scrutinize-driverless-car-crashes2.html. Accessed 28 April 2019

Danryd, E. Autonomous Vehicles. (2018) Crit, (82), 46-47.

https://librarylink.uncc.edu/login?url=https://search-proquest-

com.librarylink.uncc.edu/docview/2092793954?accountid=14605. accessed 13 March 2019.

Dodgson, Lindsay. “Why Mercedes Plans to Let Its Self-Driving Cars Kill Pedestrians in

Dicey Situations.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 12 Oct. 2016,

static3.businessinsider.com/mercedes-benz-self-driving-cars-programmed-save-

driver-2016-10. Accessed 28 April 2019

Himmelreich, Johannes. (2018). Ethics of Autonomous Vehicles in Mundane Situations. Ethical

Theory and Moral Practice. https://link-springer-

com.librarylink.uncc.edu/article/10.1007/s10677-018-9896-4. Accessed 13 March 2019.

Hugh. “Why Are Electric Cars Important to Society? – The Benefits of Electric Vehicles.” Get

Green Now, 28 Oct. 2018, get-green-now.com/why-are-electric-cars-important/.

Accessed 28 April 2019

Klein, Alice. “Tesla Driver Dies in First Fatal Autonomous Car Crash in US.” New Scientist,

www.newscientist.com/article/2095740-tesla-driver-dies-in-first-fatal-

autonomous-car-crash-in-us/. Accessed 28 April 2019

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Korosec, Kirsten, and Kirsten Korosec. “Waymo Launches Self-Driving Car Service Waymo

One – TechCrunch.” TechCrunch, TechCrunch, 5 Dec. 2018,

techcrunch.com/2018/12/05/waymo-launches-self-driving-car-service-waymo-

one/. Accessed 28 April 2019

Krok, Andrew. “Waymo Will Outfit Self-Driving Cars in Detroit, Repurposing Old American

Axle Facility.” Roadshow, CNET, 23 Apr. 2019,

www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/waymo-self-driving-car-facility-detroit-american-

axle/. Accessed 28 April 2019

Person. “Self-Driving Mercedes-Benzes Will Prioritize Occupant Safety over Pedestrians.”

Car and Driver, Car and Driver, 8 Mar. 2019,

www.caranddriver.com/news/a15344706/self-driving-mercedes-will-prioritize-

occupant-safety-over-pedestrians/. Accessed 28 April 2019

Shahabi, Cyrus. “The Future of Driverless Cars.” Google It, 2016, pp. 411–414.,

doi:10.1007/978-1-4939-6415-4_21. Accessed 28 April 2019

Stewart, Jack. “Forget Self Driving. The Future Is in Self Parking.” Wired, Conde Nast, 25

Mar. 2018, www.wired.com/story/self-parking-cars/. Accessed 28 April 2019

“Top Selling Points for Electric Vehicles.” Clean Vehicle Rebate Project, 8 Oct. 2018,

cleanvehiclerebate.org/eng/selling-points. Accessed 28 April 2019

Young, Angelo. “Self-Driving Cars vs. American Roads: Will Infrastructure Speed Bumps

Slow down the Future of Transportation?” Salon, Salon.com, 20 Apr. 2017,

www.salon.com/2017/04/20/self-driving-cars-vs-crummy-american-roads-will-
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infrastructure-speed-bumps-slow-down-the-future-of-transportation/. [].

“California's New Problem: Driverless Car Crashes.” Governing,

www.governing.com/topics/transportation-infrastructure/will-california-more-

closely-scrutinize-driverless-car-crashes2.html. Accessed 28 April 2019