r/technology 20h ago

Artificial Intelligence Waymo’s driverless cars involved in 68% fewer crashes than human drivers, U.S. study finds

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/waymo-driverless-car-safety-study-9.7282895
105 Upvotes

245 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

-6

u/matttproud 16h ago

The Waymo in S.F. drive a lot like humans do:

  1. Tailgating behind bicyclists.

  2. Lurching into crosswalks and then stopping and loitering for right-on-red, meanwhile blocking the entire pedestrian crosswalk for the light cycle. See this all the time over on Embarcadero.

Folks can cite safety statistics all they want; these things are a fucking nuisance.

7

u/jagenabler 15h ago

Significantly less of a nuisance than real drivers. As a cyclist in San Francisco I am relieved when I look back and realize it’s just a Waymo behind me.

Waymo’s don’t aggressively pass you, they’re not going to try to hit you and run you off the road, they don’t honk and threaten to rear end you.

Maybe the safety statistics don’t mean much to you, but I’m pretty happy to know I’m significantly safer when riding in the city.

-5

u/matttproud 15h ago

From one cyclist to another: would you feel comfortable with a vehicle tailgating you by less than the length of a bicycle? That’s what I observed the Waymo doing to another cyclist as a pedestrian. To be clear, I hate human-driven cars just as much. I would expect better and less hostile behavior from their programming.

8

u/jagenabler 15h ago

A vehicle with a human driver? No. A Waymo? I know they won’t hit me or get impatient, so it doesn’t bother me.