Survey: Fear of self-driving vehicles has increased since 2022
Most Americans are afraid of self-driving vehicles, according to a recent survey from AAA.
Of just over 1,000 respondents, only 9% said they would trust a car that was driving itself with no human intervention, and 66% said they were afraid of the technology.
The survey also notes that the fear of self-driving vehicles has increased since 2022, going from 55% of people to 68% in 2023, and now 66% in 2024.
The results come amid news that Waymo, which operates driverless taxis in Phoenix and San Francisco, is planning to expand its services to Austin, Texas and Los Angeles, California later this year.
Despite the fear of fully autonomous vehicles, people have continued to show interest in assisted driving technology, including automatic emergency braking as well as lane-keeping assistance and adaptive cruise control.
There are no commercially available vehicles in the United States that feature full self-driving technology, but some features are present in newer vehicles from most manufacturers. Tesla does offer a "full self-driving" upgrade to its vehicles, but the package currently only meets standards that classify it as a driver-assistance system, which still requires human attention and intervention.
