kwackers wrote:Another thing I notice in the OP link is the idea of having an independent accident and safety branch responsible for investigating accidents involving self driving vehicles.
This I think would be an excellent idea.
The thing with self driving cars is that if a design fault (hardware or software) causes an accident then it applies to all cars of the same make/model.
If the investigation team saw fit they could 'ground' a particular make/model of car until the fixes had been applied.
This is very similar to how the CAA works and I think it would be a prime mover in making sure manufacturers were on the ball since nobody is going to want to be the one that sells cars that spend all their time refusing to move.
Hee hee - you have a charming faith in the power of technology as wrought and purveyed by greedy capitalist men to be always nice, well-behaved and without detrimental effects. Progress with a capital P, eh!?
History seems to tell a different story about technology and suggests that the many unforeseen consequences of such a vast change as self-driving cars may contain some consequences that are unpleasant. Moreover, in order to ensure their profits and "freedom" to make and sell what they want to, the manufacturers may well force changes in the law that are good for them but not for the rest of us. Consider the history of the car to date.
Cugel