The Google self-driving prototype LSVs are now being tested on roads in Mountain View, California.
These prototype low-speed vehicles were designed for self-driving, however, due to California laws the vehicles will have test drivers behind steering wheels, breaks and accelerator pedals.
The Google LSV maximum speed is 25mph, and will be using he same software as the other Google vehicles that have been accidents and driving over a million miles. The limited of speed of the LSV will make them seem very s-l-o-w to other drivers, even on surface streets.
Google at it’s Google+ pages stated that the company wants to hear feedback from residents who encounter the cars.
A comment from someone in the area already noticed that the Google self-driving Lexus models will not turn left in front of oncoming traffic that is a reasonable distance away, especially in areas where there is no left turn lane.
The cars don’t drive like “reasonable person” would, then drivers behind it start to (sometimes unsafely) pull into the right lane in front of other drivers because they are impatient.
The commenter was correct, because in April Google described the same situation in its accident report:
“April: A Google Lexus model AV was stopped for a red light at an intersection of California Street and Shoreline Boulevard in Mountain View when another vehicle tried to pass from behind on the right side of the Google AV. The driver of the other vehicle slightly brushed one of the sensors on the Lexus AV with its driver side mirror. The Google AV was in autonomous mode. No injuries were reported at the scene, and there was no damage to either the sensor or either vehicles.”
Google is expanding its self-driving car fleet and reported more accidents. A consumer advocacy group contends that although Google claims they are not at fault, that the style of driving may be causing collisions.
It would seem to make sense that since all of the self-driving vehicle have cameras, that the automakers should be required to not only report the incidents in writing but to give the copies of the video footage to the DMV, we at AUTO Connected Car News reported in a previous article.
In May, the Associated Press uncovered four accidents in self-driving cars three Lexus models with Google technology and one Delphi self-driving Audi out of the fifty self-driving cars in California. Google then admitted to total of eleven self-driving accidents.
Some say they think the for the prototypes look like marshmallows.Google is running a contest to decorate the cars by artists to make them look more appealing. We have heard that some suggest that the cars need a bra. Previously, Google tested them private roads.
A Boston Consulting Group study found that for those who wouldn’t buy an an autonomous vehicle, the biggest considerations appear to be reliability, cyber security, and uncertainty about AV interactions with other vehicles on the road.
Men and younger people prefer self-driving cars, while women and most people are skeptical.
Daimler, Tesla, Audi and Delphi appear to winning self-driving connected car race in the second quarter of this year.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx at announced support for speeding up the process for new connected car technology and autonomous self-driving cars.