COMMENT: Uncertainty leaves AVs standing at a crossroads

The development of autonomous vehicles (AV) faces a fraught period ahead. Uber’s self-driving programme in Arizona concluded in tragedy. A pedestrian fatality caused by a self-driving vehicle immediately prompted postponements to other US test programmes. As the incident casts doubt over the sophistication of the technology itself – not to mention raising many legal, financial and moral questions – one conclusion drawn is that the required resolutions remain decades away.

Solutions should come eventually. Once the overarching challenges are resolved, the ramifications could be profound, altering how we design our cities and even where we live and work.