Leah Adkins

Professor Monroe

ENG 1101

22 November 2021

Self-driving Cars Should Not be Allowed

Think about being behind the wheel in a car while it is moving but you are doing

no work to control the car. A self-driving car predicts the actions of others around it while

it detects its surroundings. Now it might sound neat and high teach do have a

self-driving car but it is dangerous. What do you do if the technology in your car is not

perfect? Or, what if the car doesn´t break as you approach something in front of your

car. Self-driving cars can cause issues when it comes to weather conditions,

technology, and start bad driving habits. There are ways self-driving cars are beneficial,

but we will be explaining how they are more risky and deathly than safe.

To start off, not all self-driving cars can promise perfect technology. For example,

in 2016, in Florida, a Tesla Model S, with the autopilot engaged, slammed into an

18-wheel tractor-trailer. The autopilot didn’t notice the white side of the crossing

tractor-trailer because the sky was so bright and the brakes were never engaged (The

New York Times). Not only can a lack of technology affect the one behind the wheel or

others in the car, but self-driving cars can also hurt pedestrians. In Tempe, Arizona a

woman crossing the road with her bicycle was struck by a self-driving car operated by

Uber. The automated car lacked "the capability to classify an object as a pedestrian
unless that object was near a crosswalk," an NTSB report said (McCausland). Yes, she

was jaywalking which is illegal, but it is still a dangerous situation. What if the woman

was legally crossing and got hit. Uber has now banned all of their self-driving cars so no

more accidents can occur. Technology will never be strong enough to be able to detect

every little thing and detail to restrain from crashes happening.

Adding on, weather affects the way self-driving cars work. Self-driving cars have

only been tested in areas with dry weather conditions. Sometimes it´s not you or your

car that causes accidents but others on the road near you. During the winter when it is

snowing, or even any time of the year when there is bad weather like strong storms and

winds, accidents tend to happen. Cars typically hydroplane in the rain or with black ice

on the road. If another car starts hydroplaning or sliding through lanes because of how

slick the roads are, self-driving cars may not know how to react or stop if a car is quickly

sliding toward them. The story about the self-driving car hitting the tractor because the

sun was too bright and the white line wasn´t noticeable is another way weather can

have a negative impact on self-driving cars. Not only does it have to be rainy or snowy

outside, but it can also be a beautiful day out, and accidents because of these cars still

occur.

Additionally, it may not even be the self-driving car that causes the accident, but

it could be the one behind the wheel who causes it. Yes, it is a self-driving car and it

even says in the name. It drives itself but that doesn´t mean you should not pay

attention to the road and see where you are going and how the car is responding to

specific matters. Some drivers in a self-driving car literally watch movies while behind

the wheel or just get on their phone and act like they are completely safe and almost
like a passenger in the car. Even creators of the car and software make it aware that

people need to pay attention to the road and keep their hands on the wheel. Say you

are used to driving a self-driving car and you do not pay attention to the road or keep

your hands on the wheel while driving, it becomes a habit. When you go back to driving

a car operated by yourself you may carry over the bad habits from the self-driving car

and have problems paying attention to the road and staying off of electronics or any

distractions.

On the other hand, self-driving cars can be beneficial. Some human drivers are

just overall poor drivers and don´t know how to control the wheel. A theory could be that

having a car that does the job for you when you are struggling may benefit the way you

drive and help you and others stay safe on the road. If you take your eyes off the road

for a quick second the car will still be in control which wouldn´t be the case if you looked

away from the road for a second in a normal human-driven car. Yet, it is not possible for

every single driver to purchase a self-driving car to be able to make this theory even

work.

In conclusion, self-driving cars should not be allowed and we should just stick

with our normal cars. People shouldn’t have to worry about getting in an accident

because of the technology in their car going out or having an issue and they become in

a dangerous situation. This specific type of car can be dangerous simply just from

weather, technology, and the human behind the wheel. They might look cool and be

interesting cars, but it is better to be safe.

 Works Cited

Boudette E. Neal. ¨Tesla’s Autopilot Technology Faces Fresh Scrutiny.¨ The New York

Times, 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/23/business/teslas-autopilot

-safety-investigations.html

Harbin Anthony. ¨Distracted Driving Auto Accident Statistics.¨ HG. org Legal Resouces,

2021, https://www.hg.org/legal-articles/distracted-driving-auto-accident-statistics

-31947

McCausland Phil. ¨Self-driving Uber car that hit and killed woman did not recognize that

pedestrians jaywalk.¨ News, 2021, https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/self

-driving-uber-car-hit-killed-woman-did-not-recognize-n1079281