March 8, 2016—Most Americans are still uneasy about the technology in self-driving cars and an autonomous future, according to surveys from AAA and the University of Michigan.
Three out of four drivers surveyed by AAA said they would be afraid to ride in a self-driving car. The survey had 1,832 respondents. About 40 percent of those surveyed said that they are undecided or reluctant to purchase semi-autonomous features on their next vehicle and 84 percent said they trust their own driving skills better than the technology.
However, drivers who currently own cars with semi-autonomous features such as emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist and self-parking were 75 percent more likely to trust autonomous technology over those who did not have those features in their cars.
“What Americans may not realize is that the building blocks towards self-driving cars are already in today’s vehicles, and the technology is constantly improving and well-trusted by those who have experienced it,” said John Nielsen, AAA’s managing director of automotive engineering and repair.