Autonomous Cars Most Helpful to Disabled, Poll Shows

U.K. drivers believe self-driving cars would be most helpful to the disabled and the elderly.

A survey conducted by Nissan finds 56% of U.K. drivers see autonomous vehicles being of the greatest value to the personal mobility of the disabled, while 42% cite those with visual impairment and 30% believe the elderly would benefit the most.

More than 60% of respondents see improved mobility for everyone as autonomous cars’ main advantage. This outweighs misgivings about the technology.

Some 49% of respondents are concerned about possibility of a malfunction, and 53% say not having full control of the car is their biggest safety concern.

On the plus side, 51% say a reduction in accidents caused by human error would be a positive outcome of the technology, followed by 45% citing lower stress levels for drivers.

The survey of 1,000 U.K. drivers finds 33% claim to be excited about the possibility of more self-driving cars on the roads, and 45% say they would be comfortable riding in one.

The survey also shows drivers see benefits in the ability to do something other than driving while in the car. Some 76% of Brits admit to already multi-tasking behind the wheel, such as eating (38%) or even illegally texting (11%).

As a result, 44% of those surveyed like the idea of autonomous vehicles taking care of the driving to provide more free or productive time.

Nissan GB Managing Director Alex Smith says mass-market autonomous technologies are very much in their infancy and most drivers won’t have had the opportunity to experience life on the road with them.

“We’d expect some hesitancies about such a revolutionary change to how we drive our cars – or, indeed, how our cars drive us,” he says. “However, these results are pleasantly optimistic, particularly with regards to identifying the benefits to users who will rely on the technology more, such as the elderly or the impaired.

“The fact that more than one in seven (13%) buyers are already considering some kind of autonomously equipped car for their next purchase also demonstrates an enthusiasm for these new innovations.”

The British results were drawn from a survey of more than 6,000 people across Europe.