Surely, the many benefits to be enjoyed from the use of autonomous vehicles can blind us from the several DANGEROUS disadvantages that accompany the use of self- driving cars. These disadvantages include:
Cost - Very expensive, likely costing over $100,000.
Job loss - Truck drivers and taxi drivers will lose their jobs, as autonomous vehicles take over.
Computer malfunctions - Even a small computer glitch could result in major accidents, even more severe than human error.
Accountability - who takes the blame if the car should crash? The car itself/ the owner of the vehicle/ the programmers/Google??
Privacy concerns - The cars would rely on the collection of location and user information.
Security - Hackers may get into the vehicle's software and control or affect its operation.
Weather conditions - There are problems currently with autonomous vehicles operating in certain types of weather. Heavy rain interferes with roof-mounted laser sensors, and snow can interfere with its cameras.
Road signs- reading human road signs is challenging for a robot.
Loss of skill - As drivers become more and more used to not driving, their proficiency and experience will diminish. Should they then need to drive under certain circumstances, there may be problems.
Self-driving cars would be great news for terrorists, as they could be loaded with explosives and used as moving bombs.
Ethical problems could arise which a machine might struggle to deal with. Faced with a choice between plowing into a group of schoolchildren or going off a bridge and killing all its passengers, what does the vehicle do? Should the vehicle always swerve to avoid animals in the road or always prioritize the safety and comfort of passengers?
Human behavior such as hand signals are difficult for a computer to understand.
How would the police interact with driverless vehicles, especially in the case of accidents or crimes?