4 ms·
It'll be interesting to see whether and how much protectionist BS makes it into the final regulations. I'm all for very strict safety regulations on these vehic
by jamesaguilar 14y ago
It'll be interesting to see whether and how much protectionist BS makes it into the final regulations. I'm all for very strict safety regulations on these vehicles. The first accident caused by one could set the industry back decades, Challenger-style, unless the vehicles are so demonstrably safer that legislators can resist the inevitable panic of their irrational constituents. But I hope any such regulations are driven by the actual need to make the vehicles safe, not by the desire on the part of existing stakeholders to make the vehicles' introduction as painful and difficult as possible.
- ahallock 14y agoExisting stakeholders will protect their turf and rely as you say on the 'panic of irrational constituents.' And it would be irrational given the amount of human error already occurring--people falling asleep at the wheel, texting, drunk driving, carelessness, etc. Also, the market will take care of this without State regulations--who would want to purchase a perceived unsafe vehicle?
- khuey 14y agoA large part of the problem is that much of the total risk of driving is borne by people other than the car's occupants. People in other cars, pedestrians on the sidewalk, etc.
- tobyjsullivan 14y agoThe one inaccuracy you have here is stating the market will take care of it. It won't because the majority will know these cars are better and safer. The 'irrational constituents' are always a disproportionately powerful minority. That's one difference between free market and politics. Though, even a 'minority' (< 50%) of people considering these cars are safe enough to own would likely be enough to sustain the industry.
- SilasX 14y agoOh, I know! Challenger basically made private spaceship manufacturers and pilots have to hide their faces in public, so vilified were they!
- jamesaguilar 14y agoI don't think there was much of a private space industry then. What I'm referring to is the shift in public perception and the delay that imposed on NASA.
- wwwtyro 14y ago> The first accident caused by one could set the industry back decades Unless they deploy to multiple regions, maybe? I imagine some cultures will be much more forgiving of and reasonable about the occasional accident than American culture. If even a single city in the world successfully deployed autoautomobiles, the impact would be so swift, obvious, and desirable that most other societies would follow suit in spite of the loud, irrationally fearful minority. I hope. :)
- neurotech1 14y agoThe Challenger accident was a very public disaster for NASA. When McDonnell Douglas felt the effects of management complacency resulting in DC-10 crashes, the public perception that the jet was unsafe doomed the company. If a driver-less car has a "minor" accident due to a technical glitch, it wouldn't achieve the same level of notoriety. The Ford/Bridgestone defective tire incident is a classic example of management complacency causing accidents, but because it was a series of accidents without graphic video for the news story, it didn't achieve the same level of public awareness. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firestone_and_Ford_tire_controversy#Possible_causes http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firestone_and_Ford_tire_controv... Both Ford and Bridgestone companies were able to "compartmentalize" the fallout and stay in business.
- jdleesmiller 14y agoThe 'unintended acceleration' recalls [1] provide a recent example of how things can very easily go the other way (though of course Toyota's still in business). [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009–2010_Toyota_vehicle_recalls http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009–2010_Toyota_vehicle_recall...