A self-driving car has the potential to kill a man. Back in March 2018, a self-driving car owned by the Cruise company got a ticket from the SFPD; it did not yield to a pedestrian in a crosswalk. A week before that, an Uber car in self-driving mode hit and killed a woman crossing an Arizona street; outside a crosswalk.
SFPD Does Not Know Who to Arrest in SF Pedestrian Case
The case of the self-driving car that got a ticket for not yielding to a pedestrian is significant. The SF motorcycle officer pulled over the self-driving car for getting too close to a pedestrian; if the car got too close, it could have killed the pedestrian. According to a witness who saw the officer, he looked a little ‘befuddled’.
The police officer wrote a regular ticket for the car. However, the company Cruise claimed that the car was far away enough from the pedestrian, at 10.8 feet and did nothing wrong. Rather, the company claims that the human test driver did everything right, but also that he is the one responsible for the citation.
Who Is Responsible?
Of course, the company would claim that the human is responsible. If the company agreed that the car did something wrong, it would be expensive for the company to overhaul its car systems.
Rather, it would be cheaper for the company to point the finger at an individual human, who the company claims to be responsible. Although, the human did everything right.
Zoox Received Permit to Transport People in Driverless Vehicles
To stop events like this, companies are constantly working to improve the technology. Although the technology is not perfect yet, companies like Zoox are looking to get permits to transport people with driverless cars. And, Zoox is the first California company to receive a permit to transport people in driverless vehicles.
Driverless Age of ‘Point the Finger’
However, watch out for driverless vehicle companies. When it comes down to assuming corporate responsibility for mishaps, it turns out that it all comes down to money, and the path of least resistance. Rather than bettering its car tech, the company Cruise claims that the human driver is responsible for the citation. It also simultaneously claimed that the human driver did everything right. Welcome to the new driverless age of the ‘point the finger’ game.
