way2go! 6, Schulbuch

138 UniT 10 | Bigger, better, faster, stronger You’ve seen a self-driving race car, but what do you think are the challenges and possible benefits of having self-driving cars in normal traffic? Make a list, then collect your ideas in class. You are going to read four opinions on self-driving cars. Match texts A, B, C and D to the sentences on the next page. READING 18 a b M p. 52 The advantages of self-driving cars? Top of the list must be an increase in road safety. Worldwide, 1.2 million people are killed each year in traffic accidents. Studies have shown that even partial automation of driving could significantly reduce these deaths, making the roads safer for everyone. Already, cars with forward collision warning systems that alert drivers or automatically brake are involved in far fewer crashes. Automating driving would also bring with it the benefit of decreased traffic. As connected vehicles and driverless vehicles communicate with each other and their surroundings, they are able to identify the optimum route, which helps spread demand for scarce road space. Separate vehicles move together as a unit, reducing unnecessary accelerating and braking, which are often the cause of traffic congestion. And as automated vehicles decrease the number of accidents, traffic will be increasingly lighter since accidents are one of the biggest causes of congestion. A Self-driving cars don’t drink and drive, fall asleep at the wheel, text or talk on the phone while driving. With their sensors and processors, they navigate roads without any of these human failings that can result in accidents. But there is something self-driving cars do not yet deal with very well – the unexpected. The human brain is still better than any computer at making decisions in the face of sudden, unforeseen events on the road – a child running into the street, a swerving cyclist or a fallen tree branch. Computers can ensure that self-driving cars obey the rules of the road – making them turn, stop and slow down, but this technology can’t control the behaviour of other drivers. Added to this, snow, rain, fog and other types of weather make driving difficult for humans, and it’s no different for driverless cars, which stay in their lanes by using cameras that track lines on the pavement. B One of the biggest advantages of self-driving cars has to be decreased traffic congestion. Let’s face it, one of the leading causes of traffic jams is selfish behaviour among drivers. It has been shown when drivers space out and allow each other to move freely between lanes on the highway, traffic continues to flow smoothly, regardless of the number of cars on the road. In fact, we have the capability of pretty much eliminating traffic jams right now. All we’d have to do is allow three to four car lengths of space between our car and the car in front of us, even in slow-moving traffic. The way we drive now, when traffic gets heavy, if someone needs to change lanes to exit the motorway, or if someone needs to enter the motorway, everybody has to stop to let it happen because we drive packed so tightly together. And, there’s no other way to say it, we do this out of selfishness. Self-driving cars can be programmed to space out automatically, thereby eliminating the problem. C Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum d s Verlags öbv