In most of the given examples, humans have little control of the environment. We are, in fact, trying to use autonomous vehicles to explore. In the case of car

In most of the given examples, humans have little control of the environment. We are, in fact, trying to use autonomous vehicles to explore. In the case of cars, humans can change the physical environment to meet the needs of the car. Additionally, the car may be able to avoid a situation that it knows it doesn't handle well (e.g. avoid complicated intersections). In the one case of an environment where we have some controls (air travel), it is more difficult to "pull over" as compared to a car (as other commenters have noted).