Autonomous vehicles have the potential to transform lives by providing
transportation to a wider range of users. However, with this new method of
transportation, user acceptance and comfort are critical for widespread
adoption. This exploratory study aims to investigate what makes passengers
uncomfortable in existing vehicles to inform the design of future autonomous
vehicles. In order to predict what may impact user acceptance for a diverse
rider population for future autonomous vehicles, it is important to understand
what makes a broad range of passengers uncomfortable today. In this study,
interviews were conducted for a total of 75 participants from three diverse
groups, including 20 automotive engineering graduate students who are building
an autonomous concept vehicle, 21 non-technical adults, and 34 senior citizens.
The results revealed both topics which made different groups of passengers
uncomfortable as well as how these varied between the groups. The leading
contributors to the highest discomfort for all groups were being a passenger in
situations with a distracted driver, being in a vehicle that is following too
closely, being near a vehicle that is following too closely, and being in foggy
conditions. In addition, the results showed that passenger discomfort can be
attributed to a broad range of factors ranging from behaviors of the
driver/vehicle that one is traveling with/in, the behaviors of other surrounding
vehicles, the environmental conditions and the vehicle’s interior, all of which
may differ between different groups of passengers. This research provides
important findings and insights into factors that may influence users’
acceptance and use of future autonomous vehicles.