Our world is rapidly changing and technology is becoming more integrated within our daily lives. For one, transport is shifting and autonomous vehicles (AVs) - or “driverless cars” are likely to become the norm in the future. This technological change alongside wider shifts in consumer trends indicating a move towards a usership based transport model rather than one based on ownership, will have an impact on the societies we live in. Despite the speed of these changes, it is not yet clear how these shifts will meet the needs of residents and all future users.

Project Endeavour is answering this question and many more. As part of this project, DG Cities conducted an online survey with members of the public to understand their views on AVs and AV Ride-Sharing Services. We’re pleased to share the results of this survey in our Public Attitudes and Perceptions of Autonomous Vehicles and Ride-Sharing Report. This report provides a pre-COVID19 baseline of data which will enable Project Endeavour to map changing trends over time.

The findings of the survey were wide and varied, but we’d like to draw attention to the following key points:

·        An overwhelming majority consider current public transport modes to be cramped (98%) and the large majority believe public transport is unclean (76%).

·        Two-fifths of survey respondents are currently happy using ride-sharing services (38%). Key reasons for using these services are convenience (62%) and to save money (61%). 

·        Commonly cited barriers by those who haven’t used ride-sharing services before were perceptions of service unpredictability (72%) and concerns over sharing with strangers (62%).

·        Men are more likely than women to be early adopters of autonomous ride-sharing services (58% vs 35%) with women being more likely than men to wait until services become more common (29% vs 18%). Men were also more likely than women to be happy using a driverless AVRS service in the future (58% vs 37%).  The difference in these values could be attributed to the fact that more women than men  (58% versus 49%) indicated that safety concerns regarding sharing a vehicle with strangers was a barrier to them using an AVRS service.

The data gathered from the 2019 survey represents our baseline research for understanding people’s perceptions of autonomous vehicles. We will use the information presented in this survey to inform future user research that aims to address design concerns of autonomous vehicle ride-sharing services. 

Stay tuned for upcoming blogs, where we will be taking a closer look at the survey findings. 

If you’re interested in learning more about the findings of the survey, take a look at the final survey report.