00:00How do you feel about driverless vehicles? If the idea of getting into a car with no one behind
00:04the wheel freaks you out a little bit, let me tell you about a new study that may change your
00:09mind. Researchers say Waymo's self-driving cars are now involved in significantly fewer serious
00:15crashes than human drivers. The analysis released by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
00:20found Waymo vehicles were involved in about 68% fewer police reportable crashes overall
00:25and had 85% fewer single vehicle crashes than people behind the wheel. The study looked at
00:31millions of miles driven by Waymo robo-taxis in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Austin.
00:36Now, that doesn't mean the robots are perfect. Self-driving cars have made plenty of headlines
00:41for getting stuck, blocking traffic, and other high-profile glitches, leading some cities to
00:46push for tougher oversight. And some safety experts still caution it's still difficult to make an
00:51apples-to-apples comparison because self-driving companies are required to report even minor
00:56incidents than human drivers often never report. Still, the study's bottom line is, if nothing else,
01:02food for thought. At least for now, the robots appear to be making fewer mistakes than the rest of us.
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