Isn't that asking for too much? Most humans can't drive safely in blizzards. And unlike self-driving cars, many humans are overconfident in their abilities. If a self-driving car recognizes dangerous conditions (poor visibility, malfunctioning sensors, etc), it can simply stop.

It seems as long as these machines are safer on average than humans, they're worth deploying.

> Most humans can't drive safely in blizzards.

Sure they can. During snow squalls, accident rates obviously go up (especially if the roads are icy or if it's the first one of the season), but most drivers are good at assesing risk and take appropriate actions.

Importantly, they have the ability to decide that it's worth the risk to go out on the roads to pick up Sally from daycare (for example). In any case, if the car computer decides it won't drive, do you really think people aren't going to drive the car manually so that Sally can come home for the night? Of course they will. And they'll be fine.

Have you ever been on the freeway during white-out conditions before the ploughs have gotten a chance to come by? People slow down, turn on their hazards if necessary, and if the road markings aren't visible, naturally form two lanes instead of three (straddling the lanes). In snowy climates, a simple snow squall is something to talk about, but not stop you.

Your account of human drivers is hilarious utopian. I've driving in horrible conditions, I've watched people driving too fast and later having their car wrapped around the divider barrier, I've watched people get stuck on a residential street and end up in the ditch, then begging for someone else to go pick up their Sally.

People are awful in these conditions and exercise incredibly poor risk decisions.

You are implying that the inability of self-driving cars to drive in adverse conditions is somehow a positive when actually it is a serious limitation.

Sure, a bit of rain doesn't help the safety stats, but you can't just put the whole city on hold when there's a downpour or some fog.

> Have you ever been on the freeway during white-out conditions before the ploughs have gotten a chance to come by? People slow down, turn on their hazards if necessary, and if the road markings aren't visible, naturally form two lanes instead of three (straddling the lanes). In snowy climates, a simple snow squall is something to talk about, but not stop you.

I lived in snowy climates for a decade. Your summary completely disagrees with what I experienced. In whiteout conditions there were always cars that had gone off the road. Even after years of driving in the snow, people get into accidents far more often than in dry conditions.

And don’t forget: most of the US population has little to no experience driving in winter conditions. If the Bay Area got an inch of snow, there would be more collisions than a demolition derby.

Really? By your logic Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Wisconsin, etc. should shut down for the winter?

Businesses don't shut down just because the forecast says it might snow. Plows can't get out fast enough to clear the road to a point the lines would be readable/visible for a self-driving car. Humans may not be perfect but we find a way to get home in the snow without the massive casualties you're implying should be happening.

Most drivers don’t live in Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota, Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Wisconsin, etc. If you want to see how the average driver performs on icy roads, look at videos from Portland and Seattle. Both of those cities practically shut down when there is snow on the roads.

Ok - Illinios, Michigan, Pennsylvania, New York, etc.

Seattle and Portland shut down because they rarely get snow. You might as well have listed Atlanta.

Isn’t it enough if it recognises the limits of its own capability and safely asks you to take over?

No, actually it is not. It basically throws the operator into the worst possible conditions. Remember that the whole point of self driving cars is to eliminate the human driver. A driver who doesn’t drive is not capable of taking over from a machine which just gave up on recognizing what’s happening due to the severe weather.

An example from my own backyard. My car is equipped only with ACC and lane assist. I already had a couple of situations where in severe rain the sensors are no longer able to „see”. The car throws a fit and I have to take over immediately. These things are not fit for purpose. They are not able to judge „a big surface covered with water, risk of aquaplaning” or „surface covered with snow, temp dropping, possibility of black ice” or even simple mud / sand.

Maybe if one lives in Nevada, Arizona, California, where it’s always sunny, rains once in ten years, one can get swayed into believing that these things work. However, rsin, dnow, black ice or a mix of those and it becomes very quickly obvious it does not.

These cars, today, they are just dumb machnines without judgement. Never I am going to sit in an autonomous car outside of a controlled environment like an airport / strict city centre. Outside of the city, no way.

Computers have already been judging the conditions you cite better than humans for a long time. Your car is equipped with anti-slip systems that do a far better job both controlling the car in bad conditions and recognizing those conditions than you can.

Frankly, I'd trust a computer over the average human any day, given the horrible judgement I've seen most people exercise on the roads.

> Computers have already been judging the conditions you cite better than humans for a long time. Your car is equipped with anti-slip systems that do a far better job both controlling the car in bad conditions and recognizing those conditions than you can.

Only when they find themselves right on that surface. They’re not able to predict this before the situation occurs.

I can't drive, so no, not really.

Doesnt have to be sunny South California. There are tons of Teslas in PNW states where it rains all the time, and it still works great. I regularly commute during rain, and have encountered zero issues so far. I know it is anecdata, but at least it is supported by other numbers, such as high numbers of Teslas on the roads here.

I was thinking the same thing. I would think they thought to write in some traction detection, however I've never seen a demonstration of the like. They need to test cars in the heart of MN during the winter; when you can't see the lines on the road, and sometimes the car in front of you.

That is a situation where humans routinely crash.

The machines are better drivers, in that they admit defeat and stop.

or simply slow down. I dread to have to sit in the car that decided to just stop, risking freezing. You don’t know if you sit there for an hour, a day, a week?