Preparing a nation for autonomous vehicles: opportunities, barriers and policy recommendations

Autonomous vehicles (AVs) represent a potentially disruptive yet beneficial change to the transportation system. This new technology has the potential to impact vehicle safety, congestion, and travel behavior. All told, major social AV impacts in the form of crash savings, travel time reduction, fuel efficiency and parking benefits are estimated to approach $2000 to per year per AV, and may eventually approach nearly $4000 when comprehensive crash costs are accounted for. Yet barriers to implementation and mass-market penetration remain. Initial costs will likely be unaffordable. Licensing and testing standards in the U.S. are being developed at the state level, rather than nationally, which may lead to inconsistencies across states. Liability details remain undefined, security concerns linger, and without new privacy standards, a default lack of privacy for personal travel may become the norm. The impacts and interactions with other components of the transportation system, as well as implementation details, remain uncertain. To address these concerns, the federal government should expand research in these areas and create a nationally recognized licensing framework for AVs, determining appropriate standards for liability, security, and data privacy.

• Record URL:
  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tra.2015.04.003
• Record URL:
  http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965856415000804
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/09658564
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Abstract reprinted with permission of Elsevier.
• Authors:
  • Fagnant, Daniel J
  • Kockelman, Kara
• Publication Date: 2015-7

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Web
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 167-181
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Part A: Policy and Practice
  • Volume: 77
  • Issue Number: 0
  • Publisher: Elsevier
  • ISSN: 0965-8564
  • Serial URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/09658564

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Autonomous intelligent cruise control; Barriers to entry (Competition); Benefit cost analysis; Intelligent vehicles; Licensing; Plan implementation; Policy; Traffic congestion; Travel behavior; Vehicle safety
• Geographic Terms: United States
• Subject Areas: Highways; Policy; Vehicles and Equipment; I10: Economics and Administration; I91: Vehicle Design and Safety;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01567588
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jun 26 2015 1:43PM