In general, passengers don’t seem too concerned about the traffic safety of autonomous buses. A 2018 Finnish study surveyed riders who had used autonomous electric buses on trips that included “emergency situations” (usually mild software issues). The study found that more than 70% of the respondents thought the driverless bus drove as well as a human Operator under normal circumstances.
Nonetheless, most of those riders were deeply worried about their personal security while on an autonomous bus. The authors noted that 78% of Americans reported that they feared riding in an autonomous vehicle, and over 80% of survey respondents from the UK, France, Germany, Norway, and Spain were not eager to “trust their loved ones” to this technology. Only 8% said the driverless bus was more secure than a bus with an onboard Operator. They likewise gave the automation very poor marks in emergency management, with very little confidence that autonomous public transport can safely handle either in-vehicle emergencies (like a fire or medical incident) or driving emergencies, even those as mild as an unforeseen road closure diverting the vehicle from its planned route. Follow-up studies in 2019, 2020, and 2021 confirmed that the presence of onboard Operators positively affects respondents’ perceived safety on an otherwise autonomous bus.
This is great news for Transit Operators, many of whom have been extremely anxious about what automated vehicles might mean for their job security.
