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The Role of Human Operators in Safety Perception of AV Deployment—Insights from a Large European Survey

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  • Miltos Kyriakidis

    (Laboratory for Energy Systems Analysis, Paul-Scherrer Institute, 5232 Villigen, Switzerland)

  • Jaka Sodnik

    (ICT Department, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia)

  • Kristina Stojmenova

    (ICT Department, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of Ljubljana, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia)

  • Arnór B. Elvarsson

    (Infrastructure Management Consultants, 8008 Zürich, Switzerland)

  • Cristina Pronello

    (Interuniversity Department of Regional and Urban Studies and Planning, Politecnico di Torino, 10125 Torino, Italy
    Université de Technologie de Compiègne, Sorbonne Universités, EA 7284 AVENUES, 60200 Compiègne, France)

  • Nikolas Thomopoulos

    (Department of Tourism and Transport, School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7XH, UK)

Abstract

Autonomous vehicles are anticipated to play an important role on future mobility offering encouraging solutions to today’s transport problems. However, concerns of the public, which can affect the AVs’ uptake, are yet to be addressed. This study presents relevant findings of an online survey in eight European countries. First, 1639 responses were collected in Spring 2020 on people’s commute, preferred transport mode, willingness to use AVs and demographic details. Data was analyzed for the entire dataset and for vulnerable road users in particular. Results re-confirm the long-lasting discourse on the importance of safety on the acceptance of AVs. Spearman correlations show that age, gender, education level and number of household members have an impact on how people may be using or allowing their children to use the technology, e.g., with or without the presence of a human supervisor in the vehicle. Results on vulnerable road users show the same trend. The elderly would travel in AVs with the presence of a human supervisor. People with disabilities have the same proclivity, however their reactions were more conservative. Next to safety, reliability, affordability, cost, driving pleasure and household size may also impact the uptake of AVs and shall be considered when designing relevant policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Miltos Kyriakidis & Jaka Sodnik & Kristina Stojmenova & Arnór B. Elvarsson & Cristina Pronello & Nikolas Thomopoulos, 2020. "The Role of Human Operators in Safety Perception of AV Deployment—Insights from a Large European Survey," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-24, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:21:p:9166-:d:439920
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Kaiyue Li & Dongning Li, 2025. "How Autonomous Vehicles Shape Urban Traffic Sustainability: An Empirical Study Based on Structural Equation Modeling," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(6), pages 1-26, March.
    3. Dadashzadeh, Nima & Woods, Lee & Ouelhadj, Djamila & Thomopoulos, Nikolas & Kamargianni, Maria & Antoniou, Constantinos, 2022. "Mobility as a Service Inclusion Index (MaaSINI): Evaluation of inclusivity in MaaS systems and policy recommendations," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 127(C), pages 191-202.
    4. Oana LUCA & Liliana ANDREI, 2024. "The Impact Of Autonomous Vehicles On The City Structure: A Case Study In Romanian Universities," Theoretical and Empirical Researches in Urban Management, Research Centre in Public Administration and Public Services, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 19(2), pages 73-87, May.
    5. Liliana Andrei & Oana Luca & Florian Gaman, 2022. "Insights from User Preferences on Automated Vehicles: Influence of Socio-Demographic Factors on Value of Time in Romania Case," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-22, August.
    6. Liliana Andrei & Mihaela Hermina Negulescu & Oana Luca, 2022. "Premises for the Future Deployment of Automated and Connected Transport in Romania Considering Citizens’ Perceptions and Attitudes towards Automated Vehicles," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-23, February.
    7. Amalia Polydoropoulou & Ioannis Tsouros & Nikolas Thomopoulos & Cristina Pronello & Arnór Elvarsson & Haraldur Sigþórsson & Nima Dadashzadeh & Kristina Stojmenova & Jaka Sodnik & Stelios Neophytou & D, 2021. "Who Is Willing to Share Their AV? Insights about Gender Differences among Seven Countries," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-19, April.
    8. Kaplan, Leah & Nurullaeva, Lola & Helveston, John Paul, 2024. "Modeling the operational and labor costs of autonomous robotaxi services," Transport Policy, Elsevier, vol. 159(C), pages 108-119.
    9. Ming Yan & Zijun Lin & Peng Lu & Mansu Wang & Lucia Rampino & Giandomenico Caruso, 2023. "Speculative Exploration on Future Sustainable Human-Machine Interface Design in Automated Shuttle Buses," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(6), pages 1-29, March.

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