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Comment by buboard | Hacker News Reader

for some people, waymo-like cars are not an optional luxury/curiosity but a necessity (elderly people, disabled). It would be nice if they focused on those groups early, instead of leaving it as an afterthought. The oddities of the cars are not going to be a show-stopper, as long as the cars are safe. Human drivers will learn to adapt their way around the "roomba cars" over time.

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They did focus on these early though. Literally their first fully autonomous drive on public roads was with a blind individual, explaining how the technology was going to be transformative.

Video: https://youtu.be/ArYTxDZzQOM

that was a promo video, but i have not seen anything specific to disabled people since then

They've been working with the guy in the video for over 6 years [1], and he's the former CEO of the Santa Clara Valley Blind Center, which has aims for "a future where awareness, legislation and technology meet at a crossroads to provide individuals who are blind and visually impaired the same opportunities as their sighted peers" [2].

It sounds like they're taking this seriously.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdgQpa1pUUE

[2] http://www.visionbeyondsight.org/About-MissionVision.htm

Very much this. I'm disabled and self-driving cars would fundamentally change my life for the better.

Other than being a bit cheaper due to not needing a driver, would they differ from what Uber provides now?

Asking out of real curiosity, not trying to debate.

As a taxi service, it indeed won't be much different. But once the technology is well established, I presume there would be options for leasing. Having the option to just go wherever I want, even longer distances, would be amazing.

Huh, I’ve honestly never really thought of a service like this in that manner. That’s really eye opening.

it s going to be a huge market if it proves doable. Consider for example wheelchairs that pair with the car and auto-dock (or even self-driving wheelchairs). selfdriving cars are robots that just happen to have wheels, the posibilities are endless

Hadn't really considered that. Where I live, the transit company runs a van service door-to-door for elderly and people with disabilities that cannot reach a normal bus stop. The cost of the tickets are the same as for the normal city bus.

What do disabled folks do now in places that don't have such a service?

Taxi, Uber, Lyft.

The only advantage of a self-driving cars is that it might be somewhat cheaper.

It's strange to claim that a product that doesn't yet exist is a "necessity". A necessity is a good critical for survival, not just anything that grants a quality of life improvement.

i guess wheelchairs are not a necessity either

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