Google's driverless cars 'safer' than human drivers

Chris Urmson, who heads Google's autonomous car project, told delegates at a robotics conference in California this week that the company's Prius and Lexus cars were smoother and safer than cars driven by professionals. "We're spending less time in near-collision states," he noted. "Our car is driving more smoothly and more safely than our trained professional drivers." Urmson presented results from two studies which looked at data covering hundreds of thousands of miles clocked up on public roads in California and Nevada. In one instance, Google's car was hit in the rear by another driver, but was able to halt smoothly before being struck. "We don't have to rely on eyewitnesses that can't act be trusted as to what happened - we actually have the data," Urmson continued. "The guy around us wasn't paying enough attention. The data will set you free." Google has been testing its cars on public roads since 2010, but there are still a number of challenges to be overcome before we see driverless cars on the street. For an in-depth look at the technology, see the 24 September cover story on the 'connected car'.