Reader's Response Final: Driverless Vehicles

The webpage, “Driverless Vehicles: A Vision for Singapore’s Transport” from the Ministry of Transport (MOT) website (2018), states the use of autonomous vehicle (AV) technology will potentially transform the lives of Singaporeans and Singapore herself. AV will improve manpower productivity and “overcome manpower constraints” with the decreasing numbers of drivers to vehicles ratio. MIT’s 2011 study (as cited in MOT, 2018) mentions that car-sharing will decrease the number of vehicles on the road, hence reducing carbon footprint. In 2015, a test run on driverless vehicles had been conducted, with the course comprising of “light and heavy traffic routes, under real traffic conditions”. Furthermore, the Committee on Autonomous Road Transport (CARTS) had been set up to direct and explore the prospects of AV in the future by providing transportation solutions to increase the efficiency of road usage. In order to create a Smart Nation, MOT will work closely with CARTS towards making this vision into a reality. 

Although there is a bright future for driverless vehicles, there are still safety concerns with regards to this growing technology that could have been mentioned: AV dependency on human input, unpredictable weather conditions that will affect the sensors of the vehicle and variables caused by external factors such as pedestrians and other drivers.  

In this growing phase of AV technology, driverless vehicles are not capable of being fully independent as they still require human input. Levin (2018) commented that “the industry is entering a dangerous phase while the cars are not yet fully autonomous, but human operators are not fully engaged.” Driverless vehicles all have GPS, sensors and a navigation system. The vehicle’s emergency brakes were reportedly disabled and hence even though the sensors were able to detect the victim, it was unable to break in time. In my opinion, MOT should have mentioned the fact that the algorithm of driverless vehicles is prone to human errors. These human errors if not corrected will result in dire consequences. This point can be further supported in the article “Uber Self-Driving Car Crash: What Really Happened” from Berboucha (2018).  

Unpredictable weather conditions might affect the sensors of driverless vehicles and impacting the safety of the vehicle. Corfield (2017) states that the car’s sensors failed to distinguish the white trailer against the brightly lit background, resulting in the car driving at full speed under the trailer. MOT will be required to conduct an extensive research on data of both local climate and adverse weather conditions. This is to ensure the safety of both pedestrians and drivers. This point can be further supported in the article “Winter, Rain and Fog: Is Autonomous Technology ready for harsh weather?” by Giarratana (2018). 

Even though driverless vehicles are programmed to follow traffic rules, human drivers, on the other hand, are not. Driverless vehicles may not be programmed to handle variables such as unpredictable situations from human drivers and even pedestrians. Luciano (2017) states that “self-driving vehicles are only prepared for what’s supposed to happen. People jaywalking or making unprecedented crossings and turns can all affect an autonomous vehicle’s programming.”. These external factors should be considered by MOT when implementing driverless vehicles in Singapore.  

In conclusion, while the future of AV technology is bright, there are still safety concerns that need to be addressed by MOT. Driverless vehicles can provide efficiency for both the nation and its people, however, if research and extensive tests are not done properly, it will endanger the lives of pedestrians and drivers.  

Revised: 11 Oct 2018

References: 

Berboucha, M. (2018, May 28). Uber Self-Driving Car Crash: What Really Happened. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/meriameberboucha/2018/05/28/uber-self-driving-car-crash-what-really-happened/#421096164dc4 

Corfield, G. (2017, June 21). Tesla death smash probe: Neither driver nor autopilot saw the truck. Retrieved from https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/06/20/tesla_death_crash_accident_report_ntsb/ 

Giarratana, C. (2018, January 24). Winter, Rain, And Fog (Oh My!): Is Autonomous Technology Ready For Harsh Weather? [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://www.trafficsafetystore.com/blog/winter-rain-and-fog-oh-my-is-autonomous-technology-ready-for-harsh-weather/ 

Levin, S. (2018, March 22). Video released of Uber self-driving crash that killed woman in Arizona. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/mar/22/video-released-of-uber-self-driving-crash-that-killed-woman-in-arizona 

Luciano, M. (2017, September 29). Five Flaws Holding Driverless Cars Back [Web log post]. Retrieved from https://www.ecnmag.com/blog/2017/09/five-flaws-holding-driverless-cars-back