Barriers Still Remain for Autonomous Vehicles

NEW YORK—Consumer acceptance of self-driving cars in the United States will increase over time, according to a study from Capgemini Research Institute, and preference for riding in self-driving cars is set to double within the next 10 years.

While 30% of U.S. consumers would prefer to ride in a self-driving car over a traditional vehicle in 12 months’ time, more than double (63%) say driverless cars will be their preferred mode of transport by 2029, reports Business Insider.

These findings are part of Capgemini’s global report “The Autonomous Car: A Consumer Perspective,” which surveyed 5,000-plus people. The study found that some U.S. consumers have positive emotions about self-driving cars (36%) and expect to see benefits with autonomous vehicles in terms of fuel efficiency (73%), reduced emissions (71%) and time savings (50%). In fact, more than half of consumers (56%) say they would be willing to pay up to 20% more for an autonomous vehicle over a standard one.

The findings indicate that worldwide consumers believe autonomous cars will take on a larger role in their daily lives. Nearly half (49%) of all global respondents to the study would be comfortable with self-driving cars running an errand on their behalf; more than half (54%) would trust an autonomous vehicle to drop off or pick up nondriving friends and family members, while one in two (50%) expect self-driving cars to help them save time to pursue other activities, such as socializing, entertainment, working or simply enjoying the journey.

Despite their responses, many Americans remain concerned about the safety of autonomous systems, with 7 in 10 Americans stating they don’t want to go anywhere near driverless vehicles, according to a survey by the American Automobile Association. Last year, an Uber test car hit and killed a pedestrian in Arizona. “With every crash that we will see it will have a direct effect on this kind of adoption,” said Markus Winkler, global head of automotive at Capgemini. “Definitely safety should be a focus point” for automakers.

According to Capgemini, more than half of Chinese consumers can’t wait to get out from behind the wheel and into an autonomous car. That makes China more positive than most about driverless vehicles, with Western consumers cooler on the technology. In contrast to China, respondents from the U.S. and the U.K. are the least excited about the prospect of giving up the driver’s seat, with just over a third feeling positive about automated cars, reports Bloomberg.

“In China, but also in other Asian countries, we are seeing more excitement about ‘the new’ generally,” said Winkler. “The acceleration in the last few years comes from the government, as well.”

Even with positive consumer attitudes, barriers to adoption remain, with respondents saying that accepting driverless vehicles is dependent on vehicle security (73%) and system security (72%). 

“A degree of uncertainty and concern remains, and auto companies must consider the expectations and fears of their future customers while transforming their own operations from a heavy product focus to services and customer orientation, as they bring autonomous vehicles to the market,” said Winkler.

Capgemini identified four key areas of focus that can accelerate the journey toward an autonomous future:

• Keep the customer informed: From the consumer’s perception, the function of the car is morphing from a means of transportation to a quasi-personal assistant, which places responsibility on the auto company to be candid about the auto’s capabilities and avoid any risk of misrepresentation.
• Understand and reassure: Auto companies would do well to understand consumer expectations and bake them into the design process itself, while also investing in, and communicating, the safety and security elements of the vehicles. 
• Build an ecosystem of services: Consumers expect a wide variety of experiences inside the car, including entertainment, work and health services. Delivering these experiences will require automotive companies to partner with a new set of technology, content and commerce players in order to create an entire ecosystem of services. 
• Software investment: Auto companies need to integrate autonomous into their overall company strategy across their business. This can only be achieved by developing software competencies, which requires the upskilling of the workforce and the development of new partnerships to ensure digital mastery across different business functions.