Impact of Driverless Technology on Society and Its Ethical and Morality Problem

The Impact of Driverless Technology on Society Now and Its Ethical and Morality Problem 1.0 Introduction             Autonomous vehicles are among the most anticipated technological development of the current era. Produced and marketed in tandem with the increasing need for clean energy sources, the vehicles will revolutionize the transport sector and have wide-ranging societal implications (Herrmann, Brenner, & Stadler, 2018). Further, the technology comes accompanied by many ethical and moral implications that may determine how soon the technology becomes adopted globally in day-to-day transportation activities. Therefore, the current paper seeks to investigate the impact of autonomous vehicles on society and the moral and ethical implications that they will create. The information is essential because it will add to the growing body of knowledge that will guide the legal and safety aspects of the technology on our roads. 2.0 Background             An autonomous vehicle can also be described as a driverless car. According to Kaur and Rampersad (2018), an autonomous car is a robotic vehicle that works without a human operator. In other words, it is the car in which some or all aspects of critical control function, like braking, steering, and throttle, occur without the direct input of a human. Hence, these vehicles have five levels of automation: from no automation to partial and full automation. The technology is already being tested on roads, and some jurisdictions have established legislations that will aid in this promising experimentation. In 2018, for instance, California enacted a new regulation that allows manufacturers to test the technology. Manufacturers must adhere to numerous requirements in this legislation, focusing on state regulation and accident liability (Roe, 2019). While this law, among others, paves the way for autonomous vehicles, the numerous they require of manufacturers imply that there are many aspects of the technology that are yet to be addressed.             Autonomous vehicle technology has been touted as vital for modern society. Firstly, it is a landmark in technological advancement and may form an enduring symbol of the fourth industrial revolution. As Elliot (2021) writes, the 4^th Industrial Revolution will be driven via self-driving cars and autonomous vehicles. In essence, technology is the current generation's signature on the history of human development through technology. Furthermore, the technology, marketing in tandem with developments in clean energy sources, has been touted as a solution to reducing emissions from our roads (Massar et al., 2021). This is a vital prospect since global warming and climate change are core global crises. Lastly, the technology is expected to reduce accidents on our roads, given that over 90% (WHO, 2015) (Kirkpatrick, 2015) of accidents are attributed to human error. Automation will see a reduction in such errors.             Despite these potential positive benefits of the technology, various factors will determine the rate at which it will be implemented globally. According to Kaur and Rampersad (2018), areas with potential problems include privacy and security. Roe (2019), on the other hand, identifies regulatory and accident liability as critical areas of concern. Kirkpatrick (2015) extends this list of potential problems by including ethical and moral challenges on the list of significant technological barriers. In other words, the technology must address critical issues like trust and morals because it places humans in a new and precarious situation that goes against established beliefs.             Thus, it is expected that technology will provide an extensive array of benefits to modern society. At the same time, it will raise questions around some of the key areas mentioned. In this aspect, the following literature review section looks at the benefits vis-à-vis the ethical and moral dilemma it presents based on existing literature.     3.0 Impact of the Technology on Society             Every technology has a uniquely positive and negative impact on society. These impacts are profound when the technology is as disruptive as autonomous vehicles. This section covers some of these critical areas. 3.1 Benefits of Technology             The first touted benefit of the technology is the reduction of road accidents. According to the World Health Organization, over 1.2 million people die in accidents annually. In 90% of these accidents, human error is the leading causative factor (Kirkpatrick, 2015). The 2014 findings by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) indicated a 7% reduction in crashes for vehicles with a basic forward-collision system and 15% in vehicles fitted with automated braking systems. According to IIHS (2014), the most crucial autonomous vehicle feature is the forward-collision system. Aside from this research, different authors have also contributed. For instance, Filiz (2020) established that when drivers and traffic officers are asked to list the reasons for accidents, they only generate 25 causes at most. In a real sense, however, accident reports often include up to 63 potential causes of the accident. Thus, according to Filiz (2020), there are many causes of accidents that humans cannot account for. Consequently, when these causes are integrated within autonomous technology, some of the causes will be eliminated. In a different study, Petrović, Mijailović, and Pešić (2020) carried out a comparative analysis of traffic accidents with emphasis on types of errors, maneuvers, and collisions. The authors established that pedestrian and broadside collisions were minor in traffic accidents with autonomous vehicles. In a different study that involved simulation, Dixit, Chand, and Nair (2016) concluded that the reaction time for automated vehicles was faster than that of humans, where a collision is imminent. Further, the study highlighted that, unlike humans, automated vehicles do not experience distractions, fatigue, emotions, and alcohol or substance abuse effects that often affect human beings and, therefore, increase safety on roads. The second significant benefit of the technology is that it will reduce emissions. The United States Environmental Protection Agency estimates that a typical passenger vehicle emits 4.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually. While this figure may vary based on the type of fuel, fuel economy, and the number of miles driven, it indicates that the transport sector is responsible for a significant portion of global emissions (EPA, 2022). 15% and 2% of annual deaths in developing and developed countries are attributed to air pollution (Lai, 2021). Different studies suggest that autonomous vehicles will contribute to the reduction of emissions. Massar et al. (2021) conducted a literature review of research articles focusing on the impact of autonomous vehicles on greenhouse gases emissions. They concluded that eco-driving and platooning are the most significant contributors to reducing GHG emissions by up to 35%. However, the authors cautioned that positive emissions changes could only be realized after 60% to 80% of autonomous vehicle penetration. Similarly, in a recent report by BP, Loughran (2018) argues that self-driving vehicles and electric engines will deplete reliance on fossil fuels by 2040. In research that supports these findings, Brown and Dodder (2019) suggest that increased travel demands from automation will boost the shift away from fossil fuels. Other potential benefits include the elimination of stop-and-go (Stern, Cui, Monache, & Bhadani, 2017) waves and increased lane capacity (Chen, Li, Zhang, Zhuo, & Du, 2020). Combining these two areas is expected to reduce time spent on the road and, therefore, increase traffic efficiency, saving people time. Chen et al. (2020) found that road typical road capacity for pure manual vehicle traffic flow is 2200 pcu/h/lane. This capacity increases by 19.2% when 50% of the vehicles are self-driving and by 63.6% when there is 100% self-driving. These findings indicate a significant increase in traffic capacity and efficiency. Similarly, Stern et al. (2017) estimated that stop-and-go wavers performed by traffic officers reduce efficiency on roads and highways. Since automated vehicles will not need it, they eliminate this inefficiency. Other key beneficial areas include the transformation of mobility experience, the potential to reduce inequality, and the transformation of labor and systems (Bissell, Birtchnell, & Elliott, 2018). These are examples of the broader societal impact of the technology, including its influence on other industries like marine and air travel. Lastly, autonomous vehicles will increase inclusivity in driving. For instance, older adults, especially those with sight problems, people with sight disabilities, and those who do not know how to drive, will have an opportunity to travel around with reduced restrictions. 3.2 Drawbacks and Moral and Ethical Implications               While autonomous vehicles technology has many promising prospects, it also has shortcomings. Some of these shortcomings will determine how the vehicles will penetrate the global market. Herrmann, Brenner, & Stadler (2018) argued that every technology, regardless of its perceived importance to the global community, has a series of setbacks. In the case of autonomous vehicles, emerging issues include privacy & security (Kaur & Rampersad, 2018), regulatory & accidents liability (Roe, 2019), and ethical and moral implications (Kirkpatrick, 2015). These areas, while not satisfactory, highlight the key issues facing the implementation of autonomous vehicles.             When a driver slams on the breaks to avoid hitting a pedestrian crossing the road illegally, they make a moral decision that increases the risk for people inside the car and reduces the risk for the person on the road. According to Kirkpatric (2015), autonomous vehicles will soon have to make these and related ethical or moral judgments. A key area often referenced in this regard is the Trolley Problem. In this problem, a person must flip a switch that determines whether a trolley running into a track will kill five people or one person when these are the only choices available (Roff, 2018). Naturally, humans would choose to hit one person instead of five. However, autonomous vehicles are yet to have capabilities that make such distinctions, implying a need for a universal code. Establishing a universal code on such decisions is problematic because moral principles that guide driving decisions are not consistent across cultures and national boundaries (Kirkpatrick, 2015). The human race is hesitant to face such ethical problems. Thus, it is difficult for humans to feel comfortable letting artificial intelligence make split decisions on life and death matters. Deng (2015) argued that building ethical robots is among the biggest challenges in artificial intelligence. Further, Kirkpatrick (2015) further argues that a driverless’s method of detecting and identifying potential hazards or objects is different and less precise than a human eye-brain connection. This aspect is essential, especially where an unavoidable crash situation arises in which a human being would be much preferred to be in control.             In addition to moral and ethical implications. According to Kaur & Rampersad (2018), privacy encompas...