Uber Self-Driving Car Kills Pedestrian

Post date: Apr 19, 2018 5:56:38 PM

Uber Self-Driving Car Kills Pedestrian

By: Reilly Derrick

        On March 18th, 2018, a 49-year-old woman was killed in a accident by a self-driving car that belonged to Uber. The accident occurred in Tempe, Arizona, when the woman all of a sudden jaywalked and the car was not able to react fast enough to come to a halt in time. This resulted in a fatal collision that led to her death. As a result, Uber suspended the testing of their self-driving cars in San Francisco as well as many other places. This event has opened the world’s eyes to how dangerous this technology is, even if it does have benefits.

        When Marina students were asked if we should continue to test and use self-driving cars after this incident, they responded as follows:

        “I think we should improve the program before they put them back out on the streets,” said Tiffanie Ng.

        “No because we need to look where we are going when we drive,” said 8th grader Jackson Walker.

        “No because self-driving cars can easily malfunction,” replied Nolan Ng.

        “Yes because they are helpful so we can use electricity instead of gas which produces less pollution,” shared Dru Hansen.

        There have been many other accidents involving self-driving cars. A Tesla Model S in autopilot mode was reported to have crashed into the back of a fire truck in Culver City. Another car belonging to General Motors collided with a motorcycle in San Francisco. The accident severely injured the motorcyclist, who has sued GM. California’s DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) disregards these events. They continue to plan new regulations to allow self-driving cars to operate without someone in the driver’s seat.

        Even though self-driving cars come with risks, they also have many benefits. They will result in decreased in traffic, accidents, and car related deaths. They will also allow more people to get places. The average amount of car-related deaths per year is 1.3 million. Right now these vehicles have disadvantages, as they have been involved in recurring accidents. This has shown us that there is still a lot of work to be done before these vehicles will be safe on the road, but once they are they’ll greatly improve our lives.