Skip to main content

Tesla Autopilot feature helps driver get safely to hospital

US driver Joshua Neally made it to safely to hospital by putting his Tesla Model X into Autopilot mode when he suffered what was later diagnosed as a pulmonary embolism. The lawyer was travelling home in growing rush-hour traffic when he began to suffer severe pain in his chest and stomach. Instead of calling an ambulance he used the car’s self-drive mode to negotiate the 20 miles to the nearest hospital. He told Slate that he manually steered it into the parking lot and checked himself into the emergenc
August 10, 2016 Read time: 1 min
US driver Joshua Neally made it to safely to hospital by putting his Tesla Model X into Autopilot mode when he suffered what was later diagnosed as a pulmonary embolism.

The lawyer was travelling home in growing rush-hour traffic when he began to suffer severe pain in his chest and stomach. Instead of calling an ambulance he used the car’s self-drive mode to negotiate the 20 miles to the nearest hospital. He told Slate that he manually steered it into the parking lot and checked himself into the emergency room, where he was promptly treated.

Tesla’s Autopilot is under scrutiny after the driver of a Tesla crashed into a truck in Florida while using the feature. The crash is still under investigation.

Related Content

  • Cubic’s holistic view of traffic management
    May 25, 2022
    How can cities and transit agencies ease congested roadways? Andy Taylor of Cubic Transportation Systems suggests it would help to take a more holistic view of the problem
  • Connected vehicle technology the solution to safety?
    January 25, 2012
    A series of 'driver clinics' is under way across five states, as vehicle manufacturers and the US Government pin their hopes on connected vehicles becoming the next big advance in road safety. Pete Goldin reports. What would a car say if it could talk? Its first words might be: "Here I am". Many vehicles are communicating that very message to each other right now. Admittedly, this is in controlled environments of US Department of Transportation (USDoT) tests, but within the next few years 'connected vehicle
  • Next generation pay-on-foot parking for Lancashire hospital
    August 13, 2014
    Parking equipment manufacturer WPS, part of Imtech Traffic & Infra, has installed a new generation of pay-on-foot parking management technology on behalf of Vinci Facilities at St Helens Hospital, Lancashire, to improve the visitor and staff car parking experience and to help create a more sustainable, user-friendly parking regime.
  • Empowering Vision Zero decisions on Miovision One platform
    August 29, 2023
    Miovision One offers a 'unified interface for a seamless user experience', firm says