Speaker
Description
Autonomous vehicles are poised to disrupt mobility patterns perhaps more than any other burgeoning innovation today (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 2017). New innovations in transportation history, such as trains and cars, have changed how humans live, and cities are planned and organized (Taylor 1951). These changes have brought improvements and challenges to various population groups. The rapid evolution of autonomous vehicles (AVs) promises a transformative impact on transportation. As AVs inch closer to mainstream adoption, understanding the perceptions of different user groups becomes paramount.
Studies were conducted to examine the perceptions of AV from population groups. Dicianno et al. (2021) revealed diverse attitudes and concerns among different populations towards AVs. For instance, older adults perceived higher levels of safety, while individuals with visual impairments expressed optimism about AVs but also had significant safety concerns. On the other hand, Ho et al. (2023) undertook a bibliometric research study, analyzing a vast array of scientific articles to discern emerging trends in public acceptance of AV technology. Their study identified key themes such as attitude, trust, technology, and impact, which are pivotal in understanding the user experience of AVs. These studies underscore the multifaceted nature of public acceptance and the importance of considering both the general population and underserved populations in the development and deployment of AVs.
While these previous studies primarily touched upon aspects of safety and technology, the perceptions of willingness to pay from sociodemographic backgrounds were less studied. In addition, most previous studies were cross sectional in nature and conducted at one point in time. To date, very few studies have examined the longitudinal evolvement of AV perceptions over time, especially coving all socio-economic groups and underserved populations in a society. This study aimed to delve deep into the comparative and evolved perceptions of the various groups, focusing on multiple AV perceptions on safety, technology, and willingness to pay with emphasis on underserved populations. The significance of this study lies in its comprehensive investigation of perceptions on AVs. By identifying population groups with low acceptance and affordability but limited mobility choices, interventions can be targeted to mitigate mobility disparities among the underserved population groups, promote inclusive society with the revolutionary AV technology.
Two Michigan statewide surveys of 2017 and 2022 were used to understand the factors and evolvements of AV perceptions from socio-economic groups. Preliminary results revealed significant disparities between AV perceptions and mobility needs. Those socio-economic groups which have more mobility choices, for example, younger, male, high education, high income socio-economic groups, were more acceptive to AVs, feeling safer, and willing to pay more. In addition, the results showed an overall statewide declining trend on familiarity and comfortableness of AV technology for the 5-year period. However, contrary to the statewide trend, those socio-economic groups which were more acceptive to AVs showed growing receptivity of AVs. The findings offer some reasonable warnings about the mobility disparities exacerbated by the AV technology that those who have more mobility needs will not likely be provided by the AV technology alone.
References
Taylor, George (1951) The Transportation Revolution, 1815-1860. New York: Rinhhart.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration [NHTSA] (2016) Automated Driving Systems 2.0: A Vision for Safety. U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C.
Dicianno BE, Sivakanthan S, Sundaram SA, Satpute S, Kulich H, Powers E, Deepak N, Russell R, Cooper R, Cooper RA (2021) Systematic review: Automated vehicles and services for people with disabilities. Neurosci Lett. Sep 14;761:136103. doi: 10.1016/j.neulet.2021.136103. Epub 2021 Jul 6. PMID: 34237416.
Ho, J.S.; Tan, B.C.; Lau, T.C.; Khan, N (2023) Public Acceptance towards Emerging Autonomous Vehicle Technology: A Bibliometric Research. Sustainability 15, 1566. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15021566.
| Keywords | Autonomous Vehicles perceptions; inclusive mobility; mobility disparity; |
|---|---|
| Best Congress Paper Award | No |
