CAIT-UTC-REG 21: Autonomous Vehicles: Capturing In-Vehicle Experience and Focus Group Follow-up with Persons with Autism and Other Disabilities

As autonomous vehicle (AV) innovation continues to gain worldwide momentum and with it the potential for expanded mobility, it is vital to consider how this technology can contribute to improved access for persons with disabilities, who represent one in four U.S. adults, or over 60 million persons. To date, there has been limited research focused on investigating strategies for designing and deploying self-driving vehicles so they can best accommodate the often diverse needs of persons living with one or more disabilities. This research discusses findings from a series of four autonomous shuttle rides followed by focus group sessions convened with adults with disabilities to document their direct experience as passengers during Princeton University’s 2019 SmartDrivingCar Summit. A core intent of this research was to gather feedback and recommendations on AV from persons with disabilities who had acquired a level of familiarity with the technology through a direct vehicle encounter, transcending their knowledge of AV solely as an abstract concept. Ultimately, the research team captured invaluable information on participant initial impressions of AV; their in-vehicle trip experience; interest in utilizing AV in the future; and AV-related concerns. Findings demonstrate that the majority of participants had both positive initial and post-trip impressions of AV and were extremely interested in utilizing AV to meet their current trip needs. Participants also offered insightful recommendations that can contribute to continued development of AV technology so that it can more fully accommodate the travel needs of persons with diverse disabilities.

随着自动驾驶汽车（autonomous vehicle, AV）技术在全球范围内的发展势头日益强劲，其拓展出行服务的潜力也愈发凸显，我们亟需考量该技术如何助力提升残障群体的出行可达性——在美国，残障人士占成年人口的四分之一，总人数超过6000万。迄今为止，针对如何设计并部署自动驾驶汽车以最优适配残障群体多样且差异化需求的相关研究仍较为匮乏。本研究梳理了2019年普林斯顿大学智能驾驶汽车峰会（SmartDrivingCar Summit）中，四轮自动驾驶接驳车体验活动后开展的焦点小组（focus group）访谈的研究成果，访谈对象为成年残障人士，旨在记录他们作为乘客的直接乘车体验。本研究的核心目标是，从亲身体验过自动驾驶汽车、不再仅将其视作抽象概念，从而对该技术具备一定熟悉度的残障人士中，收集他们对AV的反馈与改进建议。最终，研究团队收集到了极具价值的一手资料，涵盖参与者对AV的初始印象、车内行程体验、未来使用AV的意愿，以及相关顾虑。研究结果显示，绝大多数参与者对AV的初始印象及行程后印象均为正面，且对使用AV满足当前出行需求抱有极高兴趣。参与者还提出了极具洞察力的建议，可助力自动驾驶汽车技术的持续迭代，使其能够更全面地适配各类残障群体的出行需求。