| I think that would be a fascinating comparison. I wouldn’t be surprised if a top x% of drivers would outperform Waymo at this current juncture. (Especially perhaps in things like heavy rain). However, I’ll use myself as an example. I’ve driven over 1.2 million miles over the last 17 years. (It may be closer to 1.5 million but I’m only counting miles on vehicles I’ve owned as that’s easier for me to calculate quickly ).
Without an accident. I know that I get tired and my driving skills drop[1]. I have to sneeze or cough and they drop. I’m on a long continuously straight road, stressed about xyz and they drop. Self driving cars won’t necessarily have the same short comings. Even the self driving features that my car has (very limited, 2023 Infiniti Q50 Red Sport 400) are better at times then I am. (Though it often will wait far too long to brake in my opinion when using the auto cruise even at maximum distance). However, I do think humans have advantages too in some situations. (If you can on average track what’s around you and try to think as close as possible to 12 seconds ahead…. If you haven’t try it sometime on the highway. ) [1] perhaps luckily, I have a tendency to drive slower when fatigued. However at times I’ve pushed it, realized I’m going 15 mph below the speed limit, and realized I needed to not be driving. I also know that when not fatigued my lane assist will usually trigger 0 times on a normal 20-30 mile drive. When fatigued, it may begin to trigger once every 10 minutes. To clarify, I’m not out of my lane, but I’m moving out of center. |