California’s Autonomous Future
Posted on May 30, 2012 Written By: iadminlaw
In an effort to reduce the number of yearly highway fatalities in California, its Senate has passed a bill that will permit the use of self-driving cars on its roads. Heavy commuters and drivers who often find themselves distracted behind the wheel can breathe a little bit easier and get back to whatever they were doing while the vehicle does all the driving. It will be like having a personal chauffer who can always be up-to-date with simple software updates. With the passing of this bill roads filled with autonomous vehicles can not only make driving more safe, but more enjoyable as well.
English: Google driverless car operating on a testing path (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The idea of having a driverless car has been around since the creation of the car. With the use of technology and advanced resources many organizations have made incredible strides to achieve this idea over the past few years. Experts in this field have prognosticated that in time, these true “smart” cars can navigate roads safer than humans who tend to get sleepy and distracted. As a true pioneer in this industry, Google has suited various Prius models with an array of radar, video cameras and lasers to navigate the roads safely, even through traffic.
Organizations such as Google have made an effort to convince politicians and lawmakers about the safety of these vehicles giving them a chance to ride inside them. Nevada issued the first license to an autonomous vehicle. Google was on the receiving end allowing the company to freely experiment in the state. These autonomous vehicles have been issued a red license plate with an infinity symbol – marking the car of the future. The red license plate will be used on test vehicles only and will be easily recognizable by the public and law enforcement. Other companies have applied to obtain the red plates and test their own autonomous vehicles. Once the vehicles are sold publicly, the license plate will contain the infinity symbol on a green plate.
The lemniscate, ∞, in several typefaces. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Google driverless car operating on a testing path (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Road inattention is what often leads to car accidents and people getting hurt or hospitalized. This can be tough situation for the families of the injured persons and can cause certain grief. A car accident lawyer can help a client navigate the tough legal and financial scenarios that arise from a crash. To reduce human error, autonomous test vehicles will be sold only as safety precaution. Those produced by Google are modified standard Prius vehicles with intricate electronics. The driver can gain control of the car at any moment by simply tapping the brakes or regaining control of the wheel.
SB1298 by State Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima) would establish guidelines that can land the futuristic vehicles in California. The bill will provide the first step of allowing vehicles to be tested and operated in California. Next month the bill will be considered by the Assembly. Taking into account that the bill passed without objection, things are looking well. When a few lawmakers test drove Google’s prototype they were convinced that this was the right direction for the state in preventing accidents even in San Bernardino. Testing the vehicle means that there could be accidents. Consider calling a San Bernardino car accident lawyer if you are hit by one of these autonomous vehicles.
