Transport minister warns there will be ‘moral panic’ as self-driving vehicles are rolled out
Transport minister warns there will be ‘moral panic’ if self-driving vehicles are rolled out on public roads and says Britain will have to endure ‘scary stories’ about the technology’s safety
- Jesse Norman has warned that there will be “scary stories” from the use of self-driving cars
- The UK became the first EU country to allow self-driving vehicles on the road last month
- The system controls functions such as steering, acceleration and braking
A ‘moral panic’ will arise from the use of self-driving vehicles on public roads, a transport minister warned.
Jesse Norman told MPs that a ‘terrible’ part of the technology’s development will be ‘scary stories, especially in the early stages’.
Last month, the UK became the first European country to allow drivers to take their hands off the wheel of a car on public roads after the UK Department of Transport gave manufacturer Ford permission to activate its BlueCruise system on motorways.
This controls functions such as steering, acceleration, braking and lane positioning.
Fully self-driving cars will remain banned on public roads in the UK, except during government-approved trials.
Legislation to approve the technology could be introduced as early as 2025.
Last month, the United Kingdom became the first European country to allow drivers to take their hands off the wheel of cars on public roads (stock image)
Jesse Norman told MPs that a ‘terrible’ part of the technology’s development will be ‘scary stories, especially in the early stages’.
Asked about the safety of self-driving vehicles by the Commons’ Transport Select Committee, Mr Norman said: ‘The horrific thing about this is that we can be rationally confident that there will be some frightening stories, particularly in the early stages, because of the diversity of human life.
“It’s a really interesting matter of consent and democratic commitment as to whether we as a policy, as a country, are able to weather that moral panic in the pursuit of a future that could lead to a vastly greater number of people not dying.” . .’
The track record of self-driving vehicles will be subject to ‘intense public scrutiny’, the minister predicts.
He added: “If people understand the difference between assisted and self-driving (systems), we should be able to create a public environment where there is acceptance and understanding of that situation, but we cannot rely on it.”
Commissioner and Conservative MP Paul Howell likened the issue to smart highways, where “public opinion kicked back hard” because people “didn’t see (them) as safe” despite data suggesting otherwise.
The government announced last month that no new smart motorways would be built, with Transport Minister Mark Harper calling it a ‘lack of public confidence’
The government announced last month that no new smart highways would be built, with transport secretary Mark Harper calling it a “lack of public confidence”.
National Highways figures indicate that these are the safest roads in England in terms of serious or fatalities.
Meanwhile, Mr Norman previously told the committee there is evidence that e-scooters are often used to replace journeys that would have been made by walking or cycling, rather than in a car.
When asked about trials of e-scooters for hire in England, Mr. Norman: ‘I think in the early days of the rental market there was a lot of excitement about the potential of e-scooters to get people out of cars and the decarbonisation and on air quality.
“We’ve now looked at a lot of the work that’s been done in the trials … and it seems the e-scooters are actively cannibalizing travel rather than getting people out of cars.”