Public attitudes towards driverless cars remain a challenge for those promoting the technology according to a new survey of UK adults, which shows that 60% feel they will always prefer to drive themselves.
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The research also found that 32% of people would like autonomous vehicles to be restricted to travelling no faster than 30mph ¬– up from 27% when the same question was asked in 2017. And nearly a third believe there will never be exclusively self driving cars on the roads.
These findings highlight the need for more on road trials of autonomous vehicles to allow people to experience the technology in action and increase public confidence, according to research author the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
“Consumer confidence is essential for autonomous technology to succeed, but if anything, that confidence has waned in the last two years,” said the institution’s chief executive Dr Colin Brown.
“During that time, there have been very few controlled trials on our roads to allow people to experience the vehicles at first hand.”
The Institution’s report ‘Public Perceptions: Driverless Cars’ recommends that areas such as business parks, airports, university campuses and potentially small towns could be used as controlled sites for autonomous vehicle trials.
It adds that the Government must accelerate development of the regulatory framework for the testing and use of these vehicles, and calls for the ongoing collection of data to assess whether the technology can deliver the safety, pollution and cost benefits it promises.
“As engineers, we remain convinced of the need to explore the potential advantages the technology offers,” said Dr Colin Brown. “The Government has plans for trials of self driving cars on roads in Edinburgh and London by 2021, but we would like to see more taking place in other locations in the UK.”
The survey also found that attitudes towards autonomous technology vary significantly by age and region. Over 40% of people aged between 18 and 24 feel confident about being an occupant in a driverless car, compared 11% for those aged 75 and over.
Meanwhile people in Scotland, Wales and the South West are more cautious about driverless technology than those in the South East and the Midlands, it was found.
(Photograph: Connected Places Catapult)
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