No matter who’s in the driver’s seat after November 5, both Harris and Trump should support the development of autonomous vehicles
Hot-button tech issues like antitrust enforcement and cryptocurrency regulation abound this election season, but one technological development ought to be endorsed by both candidates: autonomous vehicles (AVs). Driverless cars increase road safety by lowering the number of accidents caused by human error, and they can be especially helpful for people who, for various reasons, are unable to drive themselves. Regardless of the election’s outcome, our new president should lead the way in supporting this useful and important technology.
Greater Safety for Vulnerable Groups
According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, from age 70 onward, a driver’s collision risk rises, with drivers over 80 just as likely to crash cars as drivers in their 20s. Elderly drivers are also more likely to sustain grave injuries or to perish in any given collision than younger people. Drivers age 80 and over are more than three times as likely to die in a police-reported crash than drivers under 60, and they’re more than 50% more likely to die in a police-reported crash than a driver between the ages of 60 and 79.
The arrival of AVs is therefore good news for older drivers. Across a number of American cities, companies such as Zoox, Cruise and Waymo—the current industry leader—are rolling out AI-powered self-driving cars that can get elderly people from point A to point B while both increasing their safety and preserving their independence.
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Jordan McGillis is City Journal’s Economics Editor.
Photo by Alexander Spatari/Getty Images