With Waymo’s self -employed cars we are arriving at a legal absurdity: driverless infractions

San Bruno police, a Californian city, He stopped a Waymo Robotaxi after making a prohibited turn at a traffic lightbut he had to let him go without sanction: the Californian law does not contemplate fine vehicles without driver. Why is it important. This episode has revealed a legal vacuum that may seem anecdotal now – a simple illegal turn – but that raises a much more serious issue: who responds to a deadly accident caused by an autonomous car? The context. California allows the circulation of autonomous vehicles for years, but its traffic code has not been updated so fast. Circulation fines require identifying a responsible driver. If there is no driver, there is no possible sanction. The agents contacted Alphabet, the Waymo matrix, but could not issue any citation. “Our fine forms do not have a” robot ‘box “, the police department has recognized in Your Facebook profile. He has said that he is “preparing legislation that will allow agents to issue notices to the company.” It is expected that Between in force in July 2026. Between the lines. The problem is not technical but political and judicial. Technology companies have deployed their robotaxis fleets faster than legislators have been able to adapt the laws. And that gap not only generates absurd situations such as this, but it leaves citizens unprotected against serious accidents. The big question. If a waymo mortally runs over a pedestrian, who is going to trial? The algorithm? The engineer who scheduled it? The CEO of the company? For now, nobody has an answer. However, we must distinguish between criminal responsibility – who goes to jail – and civil liability: In the event of a deadly outrage, the victim’s family would not face a no legal exit. His demand would have a perfectly identified recipient: the company, Waymo, as the final head of the vehicle. The objective in that trial would not be a prison sentence, but a millionaire compensation for the damages caused, based on established concepts such as the responsibility for defective product or business negligence. The real vacuum is not if someone would pay for the damage, but how to adapt a criminal code designed for humans to the autonomous decisions of a machine. In perspective. This legal vacuum is not exclusive to California. As autonomous vehicles extend around the world, the legal systems of dozens of countries will have to solve the same dilemma: how to sanction machines that cannot declare, cannot be imprisoned and technically have no will. Outstanding image | San Bruno Police Department In Xataka | I have tried a totally autonomous taxi. This is traveling without driver

The self -employed cars promised to get rid of paying attention to them. At the moment they only achieve it every 9 minutes

The Advanced driving assistance systemsor Adas, they have become an argument of Key sale for many car manufacturers. Functions such as Adaptive Cruise Controlmaintenance within the lane and Assistants for traffic jams They promise to relieve driving load, especially in dense traffic situations. However, A recent study by the American Automobile Association (AAA) returns us to reality: technology is useful, but the attention of the duct remains indispensable. A test in extreme conditions. The AAA chose one of the worst possible scenarios: Los Angeles highways in rush hour. For more than 16 hours, over 550 kilometers, five vehicles equipped with different level 2 ADAS systems (Those who attend, but do not assume total control) face the real world. The cars were instrumented with cameras and GPS to record every detail of their behavior. Less than 10 minutes of tranquility. Although these systems promise us to have great tranquility at the wheel (even if they are not self -employed at all), the reality is very different. On average, in this study it has been seen that every 9.1 minutes (or every 5.1 kilometers) a notable event was recorded that requires driver’s intervention. There are situations that are very frequent. Among these events that require a person to take control of the vehicle, the lane invasion stands out above all. This happens when another car gets into the lane in front of the vehicle, forcing the driver to intervene to adjust the appropriate safety distance to avoid collision in the face of speed decrease. But they stay here. Secondly, there is the inability of the car to stay perfectly focused on the lane, needing driver intervention in 72% of the occasions. This is very typical, especially when it comes to curves. But in addition to these, 71 more cases have been recorded in which the car did not resume the march after a total stop or 43 moments in which the car did not stop enough, being able to have caused an accident. There are differences between proven systems. One of the most interesting comparisons that was carried out in this regard was among the systems that require the driver to keep his hands in the steering wheel and the most advanced that allow them to remove them. Surprisingly, systems that do not require having their hands on the steering wheel are more reliable when requiring a driver intervention every 20.1 minutes. Instead, the most basic systems need human help with a frequency three times higher: every 6.7 minutes. Of course, the “hands -free” systems also asked the driver to take control every 15 minutes for security. The best security recommendation: to have common sense. Given these results, the AAA has launched a series of recommendations in the face of the proliferation of these driving aid systems and trust that can be deposited in them. They point to that the alert must always be maintained, since ADAS does not replace the driverdistraction must be avoided and above all know the car and how each system works before starting it actively. Right now, the goal ahead is to press manufacturers to make driving aid systems that are more reliable. And although driving technology advances by leaps and bounds, the human factor is still essential to guarantee security. The ADAS are already mandatory. Little by little, these systems are increasingly present in our day to day and without having to pay an extra in the car settings. Since 2022 all new approved vehicles They must include Smart Speed Assistant, Integrated breathalyzer or lane involuntary change alert. Images | Charlie Deets In Xataka | The new Mazda CX-5 has taken the physical buttons ahead. According to Mazda, it’s what we want

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