Authorities, companies pushing for self-driving cars, but are people ready?

The push for autonomous driving on the basis of improved safety is a solution to a situation the public doesn't consider a serious problem

Every day about 100 people die in car crashes on US roads. That death toll is a major reason why both Congress and the Trump administration are backing automotive efforts to develop and deploy self-driving cars as quickly as possible.

However, officials’ eagerness far exceeds the degree to which the public views this as a serious concern, and overestimates the public’s willingness to see its driving patterns radically altered. As those of us involved in studies of technology and society have come to understand, foisting a