Dealing with a combination of hope and hype: Driverless tech’s promise of future lives-saved VS. deaths in overlapping test-phase

May 7, 2018 — The Harvard Gazette: “‘Self-Driving Cars: Pros and Cons for the Public’s Health’ featured Jay Winsten, Frank Stanton Director of the Harvard Chan School’s Center for Health Communication and associate dean for health communication…Though safety is the main selling point of the new technology, Winsten predicted that fatalities involving self-driving cars will rise even as the number of overall road deaths falls. An important question will involve how the public reacts and whether a backlash against the technology stalls development, he said. Data sharing will be important, the panelists said, partly through allowing firms to avoid repeating one another’s mistakes…The group listed options for drivers looking to improve car safety today. Studies have shown that automatic braking technology, blind spot warning systems, and other features can save 10,000 lives a year…which led panelists to note the potential for safety gaps between rich and poor drivers.”
Read The Harvard Gazette article by Alvin Powell