Americans and Autonomous Cars

Times are changing when it comes to how U.S. drivers feel about autonomous vehicles. According to a new study from AAA, 63 percent of U.S. drivers report feeling afraid to ride in a fully self-driving vehicle. That sounds like a lot of drivers, but it’s actually a significant decrease from the 78 percent of drivers who reported feeling afraid in early 2017.

Millennial and male drivers are the most trusting of autonomous technologies, with only half reporting they would be afraid to ride in a self-driving car.

“Americans are starting to feel more comfortable with the idea of self-driving vehicles,” AAA Automotive Engineering and Industry Relations Director Greg Brannon said. “Compared to just a year ago, AAA found that 20 million more U.S. drivers would trust a self-driving vehicle.”

While riding in a fully self-driving vehicle is a futuristic concept for most, testing of these vehicles means that sharing the road with an automated vehicle is an increasing near-term possibility. Still, drivers remain leery of self-driving cars.

AAA’s survey found only 13 percent of U.S. drivers report that they would feel safer sharing the road with a self-driving vehicle while nearly half (46 percent) would feel less safe. Others say they are indifferent (37 percent) or unsure (4 percent).

Gender seems to make a difference when it comes to trusting self-driving cars. Women (73 percent) are more likely than men (52 percent) to be afraid to ride in a self-driving vehicle, and are more likely to feel less safe sharing the road with a self-driving car (55 percent versus 36 percent).

Millennials are the most trusting, with only 49 percent (down from 73 percent) reporting that they would be afraid to ride in a self-driving car. While the majority of baby boomers (68 percent) still report being afraid to ride in a self-driving car, this generation is significantly more comfortable with the idea than they were a year ago, when 85 percent reported being afraid.

Baby boomers (54 percent) and Generation X (47 percent) drivers are more likely than millennial drivers (34 percent) to feel less safe with a self-driving car.

One thing appears to be true – U.S. drivers are highly confident in their own driving abilities. Three-quarters (73 percent) of U.S. drivers consider themselves better-than-average drivers. Men are the most confident in their driving skills with eight-in-10 believing their driving skills are better than average. But perhaps their confidence is a bit of a fallacy considering more than 90 percent of automobile accidents are the result of human error.