In this blog post, we take an in-depth look at whether self-driving car technology is a solution to reducing traffic accidents or whether it poses new risks.
Recently, a 30-car pileup occurred on a highway near Hoengseong, South Korea, leaving more than 10 people seriously injured, refocusing attention on the dangers of cars. Although many people overlook the risks, traffic accidents are one of the top 10 causes of death worldwide, claiming 1.25 million lives each year. Humans are fallible, and cars driven by humans are inherently unsafe. The solution being proposed is driverless cars.
Driverless cars are cars that are operated without any humans on board, literally “unmanned.” Until a few years ago, this technology was thought to be something out of science fiction movies, such as the autopilot system in Star Trek. However, with continued investment from global companies such as Google, Tesla, and Ford, driverless car technology is no longer the stuff of science fiction, but is becoming a reality. Chris Urmson, who leads Google’s driverless car development project, expects that driverless cars will be available on actual roads within two to five years, indicating that the commercialization of driverless cars is just around the corner.
So how are driverless cars able to judge complex road conditions and operate? Driverless cars consist of a system that recognizes the environment around the vehicle, a system that determines the absolute position of the vehicle, a system that generates routes and speeds to avoid obstacles, and a control system that estimates the speed on the generated route. Various sensors, such as cameras and laser scanners, are used like eyes to obtain accurate information about the surrounding situation. This information is then synthesized to determine the optimal route and appropriate speed. Therefore, driverless cars are more efficient and, in theory, safer because they do not make mistakes that humans are prone to, such as crossing the center line or driving carelessly.
However, even the most perfectly programmed driverless car cannot completely avoid accidents. This is because, aside from accidents caused by hacking, driverless car programs cannot completely predict the unpredictable behavior of humans. In fact, the first accident caused by a driverless car occurred during a Google driverless car test drive early last year. The accident was caused by the AI’s incorrect prediction of a bus driver’s movements. Considering that the driverless car was traveling at only 3 km/h at the time, this accident clearly shows that concerns about driverless car accidents are not just mere concerns.
Even if the use of driverless cars cannot completely prevent accidents, it will certainly reduce the number of accidents. So, is this really the way to reduce traffic accident damage? If we simply calculate the damage caused by accidents in terms of numbers, then yes, but if we consider the qualitative aspects of accidents, then the answer is no. The frightening thing about traffic accidents is not the physical injuries caused by the accident itself, but the damage caused by trauma. Physical injuries can be repaired to a certain extent, but trauma is difficult to overcome. Research shows that even 30 years after experiencing abuse as a teenager, the trauma remains. In fact, even just hearing words related to accidents causes excessive activation of the amygdala, the part of the brain responsible for negative emotions such as anxiety, in accident victims. As a result, victims feel extreme anxiety even in everyday situations that have nothing to do with accidents. The trauma caused by accidents involving driverless cars is more serious than that caused by ordinary accidents. This is related to basic human behavior patterns. People tend to evaluate their own actions positively, so they defend themselves from the effects of trauma to a certain extent through a process of self-rationalization. However, when an accident occurs while using a driverless car, this defense mechanism does not work because it is an accident that cannot be controlled by the individual. In fact, when the severity of the accident is similar, post-traumatic stress disorder caused by disasters is more severe than that caused by general traffic accidents.
Furthermore, trauma is not limited to the victims. Recently, the impact of disaster trauma on the community has been pointed out, showing that people in the vicinity of accidents suffer from mental distress caused by the trauma of the disaster. For example, the depression index of residents in the vicinity of the Sewol ferry accident nearly doubled, and their mental health indicators were significantly lower than those in other areas. These studies suggest that trauma caused by driverless car accidents can have a negative impact on the emotions of society as a whole, beyond the victims of the accidents.
With various companies such as Tesla and Google having already completed test drives of driverless cars, it is no exaggeration to say that the widespread use of driverless cars is not far off. It is clear that the spread of driverless cars will bring many benefits, such as shorter travel times and a wider range of driving ages. However, it is important to consider that the accident rate is higher than expected and that the trauma suffered by victims in the event of an accident could affect the emotions of society as a whole. Therefore, the commercialization of driverless cars should be put on hold until solutions to these issues are found.
