Skip to main content

UK science centre gears up to become major driverless car test site following report’s findings

A consortium led by services provider Amey and partners RACE, Oxbotica, Siemens and Westbourne Communications has published the findings of its research into public perceptions of driverless cars. The PAVE (People in Autonomous Vehicles in Urban Environments) project engaged with over 800 people face-to-face through exhibitions, street surveys and workshops with industry experts and 500 feedback forms were collected. The report, which was overseen by Westbourne Communications, indicates that most peop
February 27, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
A consortium led by services provider 6110 Amey and partners RACE, 8307 Oxbotica, 189 Siemens and Westbourne Communications has published the findings of its research into public perceptions of driverless cars.

The PAVE (People in Autonomous Vehicles in Urban Environments) project engaged with over 800 people face-to-face through exhibitions, street surveys and workshops with industry experts and 500 feedback forms were collected.

The report, which was overseen by Westbourne Communications, indicates that most people feel that driverless cars will be the norm at some stage between 2030 and 2050, although the majority of respondents felt there was also not enough information currently available. The majority (63 per cent of respondents) felt positive towards the concept of driverless cars being on our roads, with men being significantly more positive than women. People over 40 were also generally more positive than those under 40.

Other key findings were that most people thought that roads would be safer with driverless car technologies. There was, however, scepticism from many participants that a computer system could ever be fully prepared for the complexity of urban environments and that it was unlikely that cars would ever be 100 per cent driverless. Most people acknowledged the potential economic and environmental benefits of driverless cars, but the most popular benefit of the technology was that it could allow greater freedom for older or disabled people.

The project is now focused on preparing Culham Science Centre as a major test site for driverless cars, following several months of initial trials of the technology there.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Consumers ‘fear technology failures with autonomous vehicles’
    April 21, 2017
    With the exception of Generation Y (1977-1994), all other generational groups are becoming more sceptical of self-driving technology, which poses a new challenge to car manufacturers and technology developers, according to the J.D. Power 2017 US Tech Choice Study. The study was carried out in January-February 2017 and is based on an online survey of more than 8,500 consumers who purchased/leased a new vehicle in the past five years. “In most cases, as technology concepts get closer to becoming reality, cons
  • Report finds 87 per cent of US drivers engage in unsafe driving behaviour
    March 4, 2016
    About 87 per cent of drivers in the US engaged in at least one risky behaviour while behind the wheel within the past month, according to latest research by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. This includes driving while distracted, impaired, drowsy, speeding, running red lights or not wearing a seat belt. These results come as nearly 33,000 Americans died in car crashes in 2014, and preliminary estimates project a nine percent increase in deaths for 2015. The report finds that one in three drivers ha
  • Survey finds varied autonomy and safety technology preferences for new vehicles
    August 4, 2017
    New research on consumer preferences for full autonomy in new vehicles finds the technology is not yet popular among a broad audience, according to analysts at IHS Markit. Ironically, the same audience ranked it among the very features they would be willing to pay the most for in their next new vehicle purchase. Blind spot detection ranked highest as the most desired features among all audiences, young and old, and propensity to pay for it varied by region, with the US respondents reporting they would be wi
  • Put ‘people, not cars' first in transport systems, says UN Environment chief
    October 21, 2016
    Lack of investment in safe walking and cycling infrastructure not only contributes to the deaths of millions of people in traffic accidents on unsafe roads and poorly designed roadways, but also overlooks a great opportunity to boost the fight against climate change, according to a new UN Environment report. In Global Outlook on Walking and Cycling, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) claims that greater investment in such infrastructure could help save millions of lives and reduce emissions of global w