HUMAN ERROR & ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY: An Analysis of an NTSB News Release on Self-Driving Vehicle Fatality

The March 2018 fatal event in Tempe, AZ, when a self-driving experimental vehicle struck a pedestrian continues to offer safety lessons to safety professionals and influence the public at large. The news release from National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSB) preliminary investigation into the fatal crash (reported in PSJ, July 2018, p. 13) is a perfect example of NTSB spreading the wrong safety message. Conversely, 1) the "smart" car detected the pedestrian 6 seconds before impact (about 120 yards at 43 mph) but misinterpreted the data inputs; 2) the car's factory-equipped automatic emergency braking feature was disabled; and 3) dependence on an in-car human operator (who was tasked with other duties while operating the vehicle) to intervene are critical design and engineering flaws.