TEXAS, USA. – Two people died Saturday night in an accident involving a Tesla driving without anyone behind the wheel, which took place in Harris, Texas, in the United States, north of the city of Houston, according to county authorities.
One of the deceased was in the passenger seat and another in the back seat. Corresponding authorities assured this Sunday (April 18) that they have “99.9%” assurance that “no one was driving the vehicle at the time of the collision”.
The Tesla collided with a tree at high speed in a bend and it took firefighters four hours to put out the fire.
Investigators are trying to determine whether the airbags were deployed and whether the vehicle had deployed steering assistance, an intelligent assistance system that Tesla markets as “autopilot” or “autopilot.”
The American company, for its part, asks its drivers to be aware of driving at all times in order to take control of the vehicle and invites them to activate the intelligent assistance system, as it is safer than driving without it.
The accident took place when Tesla started testing a system with some of its drivers “Total autonomous driving”Despite this innovation, the car company demands that the driver always keep his hands on the wheel.
Experts have criticized the company for using terms like “automatic pilot” and give the vehicle a false appearance of autonomy.
The U.S. Highway Safety Agency (NHTSA, for its English acronym), in turn, is analyzing the possibility of imposing rules to ensure drivers’ attention behind the wheel, while new driving automats are being implemented in the automotive industry.
The NHTS is investigating more than twenty Tesla electric vehicle accidents while using the assisted driving system.
Likewise, Tesla CEO Elon Musk defended his electric car safety record, assuring this week that driving assistance is a possibility “10 times less” of an accident.
With information from La República