The Morality In Self-Driving Cars

We are aware that at least of couple of companies are attempting to create a self-driving car for public consumption.  It has been something of a dream for car users to not have to actually drive their vehicle at all times, especially since we are well aware of the dangers of driving when not at peak alertness.  Unfortunately, we cannot all rely on public transportation or friends' generosity, so a self-driving car would save the exhausted or the chemically altered from risking fines and destruction, as well as the guilt of having injured or even killed somebody.  The self-driving car, we are told, has the added benefit of being aware of all other cars on the roads, even those beyond our line of sight, and thus can choose a better alternative when the intended road is too crowded.  GPS and internal maps allow the cars to prepare for turns and the like far before arriving at them, minimizing the dangers of cutting off other cars or missing exits.  A car in distress could alert emergency services or at least a tow truck before breaking down in the middle of the highway.  Nothing but positives!

The trouble comes when we remember that, although cars will mainly be on the road, they will not be the only things on the road.  Animals have a habit of wandering into traffic.  People are also guilty of this.  Objects can roll or blow into the road, creating a dangerous situation, especially when those objects are unexpectedly followed by their owners.  Short of confining traffic to impenetrable tubes and tunnels, there is no way to avoid the decision of what to run into or over.  The self-driving car has to make that decision, unless a valiant driver chooses to override the program and take responsibility herself.

It comes down to a hierarchy of value.  Who is more valuable, the squirrel or the pedestrian?  Should the car avoid the jaywalker even if it means the possibility of injury to the passenger?  If there is no way to avoid a crowd of people in the middle of the street, which ones are the most disposable?  Small animals might be an acceptable casualty, but large animals like deer, bears, and errant cattle not only deserve some respect as living things, but certainly pose a danger of great damage to the car and injury to those in it.  How should the car react when ten deer cross the road, when hitting one could mean disabling the vehicle just as much as going off the road does?

Polls, quizzes and online questionnaires attempt to find reasonable answers to these doubts, but there is no 100% agreement.  It seems we all have personal hierarchies when it comes to assigning value to those we share our traffic spaces with, which really should come as no surprise.  It may be that self-driving cars will ask their owners to program the hierarchy upon acquisition, leaving it unknown if any particular car will drive over a dog or swerve into the other lane, even at the risk of hitting another car.  Our cars will continue to be extensions of ourselves, doing as we would do on our prior orders.

Is this really a higher level of safety than we have today?  Perhaps not.  However, those of us who value individual choice and liberty may have to take it rather than acquiesce to somebody else's pre-programmed auto morality.