[j42]

I think the author is also missing the implications of static mapping being only a partial paradigm in the car as a whole.

While I can't speak for the specific project, I imagine in addition to static/procedural mapping, there are generalized machine-learning algorithms & gradients which take into account arbitrary weights on context (traffic laws, potential loss of life, traction & other situational data, avoidance costs, actions of surrounding drivers, etc) and optimally, produce a decision that is as close to a human reaction as possible, while boosting efficiency and minimizing for injury.

And I imagine the resources are available to test the edge cases in simulated conditions more extreme (though perhaps less variable) than those encountered on public roads.

It may be another 5 years, but the solution is simply one of technological advancement--better static routines combined with more efficient behavioral models that produce better outcomes than the reaction of a human nervous system.

(And this is somewhat disheartening for an admitted 'petrolhead,' but innovation is an unstoppable force)