“TO ERR IS HUMAN,” a great poet once divined. Research shows that human error is a critical factor, at least in part, in the vast majority of motor vehicle crashes.

"The key to helping consumers feel more comfortable with fully self-driving vehicles will be bridging the gap between the perception of AV technology and the reality of how it actually works."

Driving aggressively, driving too fast, illegal maneuvers, driver distractions, inattention, the misjudgment of the actions and speed of others, improper vehicle control, and failure to stay in the proper lane are common decision errors and performance mistakes committed by drivers in the chain of events leading to a crash. Equipment or mechanical failure is an underlying factor to a lesser degree.

Transportation agencies and planners in the Washington metropolitan area, their counterparts at the federal and state levels, plus automakers and thought leaders, are preparing for the advent and delivery of autonomous vehicles – or fully self- driving vehicles – on roadways. The shift to automation is hoped to vanquish the likelihood of human error and break the causal chain triggering roadway crashes.

Nearly six in 10 drivers in America “believe self-driving cars will eliminate the problem of distracted driving,” according to a survey commissioned by Erie Insurance. Distracted driving kills an average of nine people and injures over 1,000 people every day. Taking eyes off the road for just two seconds doubles the risk of crashing.

Unlike far too many drivers on the road today, a self-driving car doesn’t get distracted. It doesn’t chatter away on a cell phone or send or view texts while cruising along.

In theory, the deployment of fully-autonomous vehicles should result in a reduced number of crashes, fatalities and serious injuries on our roadways.

Automakers, their technology partners, and research institutions are all working to develop self-driving technology.

In truth, autonomous technology exists on the road today. It is already here in the form of safety features like adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking or lane keeping technologies. The “Meet George Jetson” technology in today’s vehicle fleet monitors the road and intervenes when necessary.

Yet based on testing by automakers, technology companies, research groups, and the American Automobile Association (AAA), the technology’s implementation is not yet sufficiently fail-safe. There is still no replacement for an actively engaged human driver. Even with the latest systems drivers have to pay attention.

Some pundits argue that some of the gee-whiz vehicle automation or advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) features could pose unexpected driver distraction risks. New in-vehicle infotainment technology has the potential to increase comfort and extend mobility for some drivers. But first it has to stop distracting them, warns the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety.

Advanced driver assistance systems are the building blocks toward autonomous vehicles. Still, some thought leaders fear “distracted driving will grow exponentially on the path to self-driving cars.”

The law of human nature tempts us to multi-task when behind the wheel. To empower people to modify this behavior, the AAA launched a “Don’t Drive Intoxicated-Don’t Drive Intexticated” campaign earlier this year. Take the pledge online to drive distraction-free both now and when self-driving vehicles take to the streets at http://www.aaa.com/ DontDriveDistracted.

Autonomous Vehicle (AV) technology and the race to fully-self driving cars and trucks are outpacing our comfort level and the willingness of motorists to climb on board. In the aftermath of tragic incidents involving automated vehicles, the majority of Americans confessed they are afraid to ride in fully self-driving vehicles. In fact, seven out of 10 people, or 71%, admitted they are afraid to do so, a 2019 AV survey by AAA reveals.

The key to helping consumers feel more comfortable with fully self-driving vehicles will be bridging the gap between the perception of AV technology and the reality of how it actually works. But most of us, three in four Americans, are not there yet. Currently, 55 percent of Americans think most cars will have the ability to drive themselves by 2029.

We can’t afford to wait until the promise of self-driving cars fully comes to end the pandemic of distracted driving. Even when automated vehicles start hitting roads, the human factor, the ultimate fail-safe, can save the day.

Like Neil Armstrong switching off the auto-pilot on the Apollo 11 Lunar Module and flying it manually over craggy boulders to safety 50 years ago, undistracted and fully engaged drivers must be ready to step in and take control of the self-driving vehicle, if its AV technology fails.