A survey of preferences towards autonomous vehicles in the U.S.
Survey regarding ride-sharing, long-distance travel, ethics, & privacy with respect to connected and autonomous vehicles
A panel of Americans was used to access respondents from across the United States. Nearly 10,000 Americans were targeted before the required sample attributes were obtained, due to two screening procedures. The first screen blocked respondents from accessing the survey in its entirety if they failed to answer two initial basic questions regarding AVs and SAVs, after relevant information was provided. The second level of screening was done by removing respondents who took less than 15 minutes to complete the survey, since a low response time was deemed unrealistic for anyone going through this 70- question long survey. Both screens helped ensure respondents were intellectually engaged and paying attention.
Past surveys have not investigated all aspects of Americans’ preferences towards AVs. This survey aimed to fill the gaps in this research, namely those related to ride-sharing, crash ethics, privacy concerns, and long-distance travel.
The results of this survey can be used to predict which segments of the population are most interested in these new technologies. By looking at respondents’ WTP, for example, a researcher may glean which demographic characteristics are associated with placing high levels of value on this new set of transportation innovations.
The survey was conducted in 2017.
Key Highlights
1. 70 question survey; tackles AV/SAV ride-sharing preferences including WTP for DRS with a stranger - by time of day (night vs. daytime).
2. The value of providing one’s location en-route (to a close friend or family member) was also addressed, when sharing an SAV ride with a stranger.
3. Questions on LD travel were based on mode-choice preferences for different types of trips and a respondent’s typical LD trip.
Uses and Visualizations
The following is a sample table from Gurumurthy and Kockelman (2018) demonstrating how statistical models can be used to analyze this dataset.
Technical Details
Funding for acquisition of this data set came from the NSF.
Citation
Krishna Murthy Gurumurthy & Kara M. Kockelman. 2018. Survey regarding ride-sharing, long-distance travel, ethics, & privacy with respect to connected and autonomous vehicles.
Publications
Gurumurthy, K., & Kockelman, K. (2018). Modeling Americans' Autonomous Vehicle Preferences: A Focus on Dynamic Ride-Sharing, Privacy, & Long-Distance Mode Choices. Under review for publication in Technological Forecasting and Social Change.
Nodjomian, A., & Kockelman, K. (2018). How Do Land Use Patterns Affect Ownership & Use of Self-Driving Vehicles? Under review for publication in Journal of Transport Geography.
Authors
In order to access the data, contact these authors.
Kara Kockelman: kkockelm@mail.utexas.edu
Krishna Murthy Gurumurthy : gkmurthy10@utexas.edu
