A driver in the United States came face to face with death after his Tesla took control at a railroad crossing. The car broke through the railcrossing arms as a train approached.
Joshua Brown from Plano, Texas, stated that the fully autonomous driving mode of his car activated while he was waiting at a railroad crossing.
Images distributed to the local press show how the vehicle broke through the fiberglass barriers of the railroad crossing, shattering its windshield, while the train was just a few meters away, reports the publication Futurism.
Brown admitted that he wasn't paying attention while waiting for the train to pass - something normal for a human. However, for an autonomous vehicle, it is unforgivable. "Just about the time I realized I was moving, the gate was right there, right in front of me," he said.
The car's rear camera captured the railroad crossing as a Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) train sped by, narrowly missing the Tesla by a few car lengths.
The experience shook Brown up a bit. "At the end of the day, if my time was up, it's time for me to go - but God had me and I'm grateful to still be here," he confessed, adding that he won't sue Tesla for this incident.
The company states that drivers "should be actively engaged when driving."
"I guarantee you I will put my foot on the brake - or simply take control - at a railroad crossing. I won't have to trust that the car will stay there anymore," said the fortunate driver.
Ironically, another driver with the same name, Joshua Brown from Florida, became the first known victim of an autonomous car in May 2016. It is presumed that Josh Brown was watching a "Harry Potter" movie at the time of the accident.
However, after nearly a decade of development in the field of autonomous vehicles, Tesla still fails to provide full passenger safety, even when the safest thing to do is to stay put, notes the cited publication.
T.D.