Americans Still Skeptical of Self-Driving Cars

While 12% of consumers say they would trust traveling in a self-driving car, 28% say they are unsure of how they feel about the matter, according to a new survey from AAA. 

It appears lack of control remains an issue that keeps Americans wary when it comes to safety and self-driving cars. In fact, 72% said they would feel safer riding in a self-diving vehicle if they had the ability to take over control if something were to go awry.

Another 69% said they’d feel more secure if there was a human backup driver on board.

Other factors that influence how safe the public feels include testing and demonstrations of the technology. For example, 47% said they’d feel safer knowing the autonomous car has passed rigorous testing and inspections. Another 42% said seeing or experiencing a demonstration of the car would make them feel more comfortable with the technology.

The survey also explored consumers’ views about public information on key issues surrounding self-driving vehicles like safety and liability.

Six in 10 Americans would like to see more information in news stories or other public sources about who will be legally responsible for crashes with self-driving cars.

This was followed by wanting information about laws to make sure self-driving cars are safe (51%), how vulnerable self-driving cars will be to being hacked (49%) and easy-to-understand information about how self-driving cars will work (44%).