High profile accidents related to autonomous vehicles are
impacting the planned expansion of existing autonomous vehicle
pilot programs. In 2016, a driver in Florida died while using
autopilot mode on his vehicle. Then, on March 18, 2018, a
pedestrian was struck and killed in Tempe, Arizona by a Volvo XC90
sport utility vehicle, fitted with self-driving capabilities.
The vehicle was part of Uber's autonomous vehicle pilot
program, and Arizona's governor thereafter suspended that
program in Arizona.
Only a few months before the vehicle crash, Uber CEO Dara
Khosrowshahi, sat down with Bloomberg News
Editor-In-Chief, John Micklethwait, to detail Uber's autonomous
vehicle plans. According to Khosrowshahi, Uber began its endeavor
by launching various pilot projects in major cities nationwide,
including Tempe, Arizona—the location of this latest
incident. The company's plan, he explained, was to promote
autonomous transportation, "and feather it in" with
traditional
