More and more vehicles have some form of self steering to stay within highway lines. But they don’t seem quite as smooth and natural as human drivers, especially in non ideal conditions.
As others answer your question - bear in mind that regardless of the assistive capabilities of the vehicle, the human driver is lawfully responsible at all times.
This is the most correct answer. As someone in the automotive industry, all “self steering” systems are different. There are systems that keep the vehicle inside the lanes hands free, and from the outside you can’t tell if it’s a human or not. Tesla’s FSD, Ford’s Blue Cruise, and GM’s Super Cruise are good examples. And even with those systems active, the driver is still responsible for everything that happens on the road.
There are also “Lane Keep Assistance” systems that are not designed to be relied upon to navigate the lane. They are only to be used as an assistive function (hence the name) that gently nudges the car back towards the center if the driver drifts too far to the edge. I’ve seen some drivers just let them ping pong down the road, thinking that it’s supposed to always stay in the lane, and in my experience, it’s not a safe way to use it at all, and someone should get pulled over for doing that.
I've pulled people over for drifting within their lane if I have other indicators of potential impairment being displayed as well, but just drifting within a lane is not a traffic violation and I think it would be pretty hard to justify RAS for a stop with that being the sole indicator.
None of the cars I stopped were equipped with any driver assist features.
And regardless of what driver assist and "self driving" features a car may, there still has to be a driver legally in control of the vehicle (which means at a minimum valid license, sober, and awake.)
This topic comes up in the EV subreddit that I'm a member of. Folks complain about our cars that "ping pong" from side to side when lane keeping assist is on. It definitely makes me nervous that an LEO will think I'm impaired when it's on.
I've heard of some car models that show a light in the back window to alert other drivers that hands free or other automated driving like cruise control is being used. That seems like a good idea to me for both LEO and non-LEO drivers.
I mean this sincerely, why can't people be bothered to steer their car and pay driving the full attention it deserves?
Side note: I think we need to take all this shit technology out of cars and make them all H pattern manuals. It makes driving distracted substantially more difficult.
The march of technology advancement will hopefully never change. If it reduces accidents on the road, that's a good thing. That's why insurance companies give discounts for driver assistance technology.
I genuinely don't think driver assistance reduces accidents. It just facilitates people staying distracted by being perpetually on their phones. From what I can find on bureau of transportation website, highway accidents have mostly trended upwards since about 2011 (2020 being the big exception).
Yes. I was parked on the side of the road and almost got rear ended by a Tesla. Guy was on his way back to work from the McD's drive through and was eating his lunch while letting his car drive. Only reason he didnt hit me is because he saw what was happening and took back over control to swerve and avoid me.
As others answer your question - bear in mind that regardless of the assistive capabilities of the vehicle, the human driver is lawfully responsible at all times.
This is the most correct answer. As someone in the automotive industry, all “self steering” systems are different. There are systems that keep the vehicle inside the lanes hands free, and from the outside you can’t tell if it’s a human or not. Tesla’s FSD, Ford’s Blue Cruise, and GM’s Super Cruise are good examples. And even with those systems active, the driver is still responsible for everything that happens on the road.
There are also “Lane Keep Assistance” systems that are not designed to be relied upon to navigate the lane. They are only to be used as an assistive function (hence the name) that gently nudges the car back towards the center if the driver drifts too far to the edge. I’ve seen some drivers just let them ping pong down the road, thinking that it’s supposed to always stay in the lane, and in my experience, it’s not a safe way to use it at all, and someone should get pulled over for doing that.
I've pulled people over for drifting within their lane if I have other indicators of potential impairment being displayed as well, but just drifting within a lane is not a traffic violation and I think it would be pretty hard to justify RAS for a stop with that being the sole indicator.
None of the cars I stopped were equipped with any driver assist features.
And regardless of what driver assist and "self driving" features a car may, there still has to be a driver legally in control of the vehicle (which means at a minimum valid license, sober, and awake.)
It really depends on their entry angle and how well it can maintain it.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/9bg8p1jOBdc
Glad I'm not the only one that thought we were talking about that kind of drifting.
This topic comes up in the EV subreddit that I'm a member of. Folks complain about our cars that "ping pong" from side to side when lane keeping assist is on. It definitely makes me nervous that an LEO will think I'm impaired when it's on.
I've heard of some car models that show a light in the back window to alert other drivers that hands free or other automated driving like cruise control is being used. That seems like a good idea to me for both LEO and non-LEO drivers.
I mean this sincerely, why can't people be bothered to steer their car and pay driving the full attention it deserves?
Side note: I think we need to take all this shit technology out of cars and make them all H pattern manuals. It makes driving distracted substantially more difficult.
Laziness is a disease that has no bounds. It's evident in most everything we do.
The march of technology advancement will hopefully never change. If it reduces accidents on the road, that's a good thing. That's why insurance companies give discounts for driver assistance technology.
I genuinely don't think driver assistance reduces accidents. It just facilitates people staying distracted by being perpetually on their phones. From what I can find on bureau of transportation website, highway accidents have mostly trended upwards since about 2011 (2020 being the big exception).
I’ve made DUI arrests on people driving Teslas in autopilot because the car can’t maintain its lane.
Yes. I was parked on the side of the road and almost got rear ended by a Tesla. Guy was on his way back to work from the McD's drive through and was eating his lunch while letting his car drive. Only reason he didnt hit me is because he saw what was happening and took back over control to swerve and avoid me.
Do keep in mind that some ADASystems in EVs will hug the inside of turns to maximize efficiency.