The Potential Implications of Autonomous Vehicles in and around the Workplace.

Simone Pettigrew,Lin Fritschi,Richard Norman

doi:10.3390/ijerph15091876

Simone Pettigrew, Lin Fritschi + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15091876

Copy DOI

Abstract

The advent of autonomous vehicles is forecast to bring enormous changes to the workplace as positions primarily involving driving become progressively redundant. Little is known about public awareness of these impending changes and the potential impacts on society and individuals. This study involved a national survey of Australians and interviews with key stakeholders across multiple countries to identify major potential issues associated with vehicle automation, including in and around the workplace. Most survey respondents had concerns relating to job losses in driving occupations, while almost half anticipated increased employment in technology-related areas. Three primary themes were evident in the data from the stakeholder interviews: (1) the inevitability of the universal use of AVs and hence the immediate need for labour market planning, (2) associated potential effects on occupations that are not primarily structured around driving, and (3) the possibility of increased worker safety and enhanced commuting opportunities.

Highlights

Technological advances have long brought substantial changes to the workplace
Respondents were asked to report how likely it is that the introduction of fully autonomous vehicles would result in “Job losses”, “Loss in human driving skills over time”, and “Increased jobs (e.g., IT technicians)”.Given the recency of the advent of AVs and lack of available relevant survey instruments, more detailed information relating to perceptions of the implications of AVs for working life was obtained in Study B
The survey results indicate that the general public has some appreciation of the extensive job losses that are forecast to eventuate in specific industries involving driving as a primary skill set [4]

Summary

Introduction

Technological advances have long brought substantial changes to the workplace. The pace of change has escalated over time, with increasing application of robotic technologies to diverse occupations ranging from street cleaning to surgery [1]. There are three primary ways in which AVs are being introduced around the world: (1) the implementation of autonomous forms of public transport (e.g., trains and buses), (2) ride-share companies are developing autonomous fleets, and (3) individuals are purchasing personal vehicles with autonomous features (e.g., lane keeping systems, adaptive cruise control, parking assistance, automatic braking while skidding, and blind spot and collision warning systems: [5,6,7,8]). These implementation scenarios are emerging in combination, and it has yet to be seen whether one mode will dominate or whether there will be different mixes of transport systems in different cities and countries. A likely ultimate scenario is that in the long term ‘mobility as a service’ (MaaS) will evolve to provide seamless door-to-door conveyance involving multiple forms of transport that are bundled together in the form of personalised mobility packages [9]

Objectives

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion