# Encounter with the Google car today...



## Oxtox

a Google self-driving Lexus has been in my neighborhood for the last couple of weeks doing some road testing.

near the end of my ride today, we both stopped at an intersection with 4-way stop signs.

the car got to the stop line a fraction of a second before I did, so it had the ROW. I did a track-stand and waited for it to continue on through.

it apparently detected my presence (it's covered in Go-Pros) and stayed stationary for several seconds. it finally began to proceed, but as it did, I rolled forward an inch while still standing. the car immediately stopped...

I continued to stand, it continued to stay stopped. then as it began to move again, I had to rock the bike to maintain balance. it stopped abruptly.

we repeated this little dance for about 2 full minutes and the car never made it past the middle of the intersection. the two guys inside were laughing and punching stuff into a laptop, I guess trying to modify some code to 'teach' the car something about how to deal with the situation.

the odd thing is that even tho it was a bit of a CF, I felt safer dealing with a self-driving car than a human-operated one.


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## Marc

LOL, nice.

Cars have gotten to the point where zero skill or brains is required to operate them...and consequently that is what we see on display on a daily basis...people with zero skill and brains texting while driving, who all know they shouldn't be doing what they are doing...doing it anyway.

You should have given the guys a thumbs up.


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## AlanE

Obviously it was confused by your presence, but at least had been programmed with some common sense to stop and evaluate the situation. Either that, or it was simply admiring your track-stand skills.


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## Retro Grouch




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## wgscott

Retro Grouch said:


>


Looks like they forgot to set the $LEFTHANDSIDE environment variable.


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## ericm979

That's a Google Maps car, not the self-driving one. The Maps cars are driven by humans.

I've had many actual humans do the same thing that Oxtox describes.


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## Oxtox

ericm979 said:


> That's a Google Maps car, not the self-driving one. The Maps cars are driven by humans.


your assumption is utterly and completely wrong.

it says in graphics on the side of the vehicle...GOOGLE SELF-DRIVING CAR.


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## Sanders

No it doesn't... It says "google.rs/streetview"


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## Oxtox

here ya go...

Google's self-driving cars hit the roads in Austin, Texas - CNET


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## kiwisimon

Google Maps Street View car crashes in Serbia

read the facts you two


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## Sanders

kiwisimon said:


> Google Maps Street View car crashes in Serbia
> 
> read the facts you two


I don't get why they mention the self-driving car in the end as it clearly isn't the vehicle involved in the crash.


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## mm9

In a way this is all scary. When these things go haywire, people are going to die. But, statistically, I bet they are a lot more safe than humans driving. Just wild stuff isn't it. Thanks for sharing your experience Oxtox. 

Here is a video from Google on the project if you all haven't seen it: How it works ? Google Self-Driving Car Project


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## Oxtox

mm9 said:


> In a way this is all scary. When these things go haywire, people are going to die. But, statistically, I bet they are a lot more safe than humans driving. Just wild stuff isn't it. Thanks for sharing your experience Oxtox.


well, that's the point I was trying to make...

even with the potential for a computer malfunction, I'd rather trust an algorithm to protect me than some dufus human driver.


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## ericm979

Oxtox said:


> your assumption is utterly and completely wrong.
> 
> it says in graphics on the side of the vehicle...GOOGLE SELF-DRIVING CAR.


No, it says Google Maps.

I work next to Google. I see their self-driving cars all the time. This isn't one of them.

It's too bad you felt the need to be a jerk about it. Bye!


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## ibericb

I would love to have seen that dance. Video would be priceless.


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## Oxtox

ericm979 said:


> No, it says Google Maps.
> 
> I work next to Google. I see their self-driving cars all the time. This isn't one of them.
> 
> It's too bad you felt the need to be a jerk about it. Bye!



everything you've posted in this thread is incorrect.

the vehicle that I saw is clearly labeled as a self-driving car.

working next to Google doesn't give your comments any validity.


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## PBL450

Oxtox said:


> everything you've posted in this thread is incorrect.
> 
> the vehicle that I saw is clearly labeled as a self-driving car.
> 
> working next to Google doesn't give your comments any validity.


I think you are talking about the car you saw and he is talking about the car in the picture. (Which obviously isn't labelled self-driving) we get the street view cars around here, I've seen them (or it?) a few times.


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## Oxtox

PBL450 said:


> I think you are talking about the car you saw and he is talking about the car in the picture. (Which obviously isn't labelled self-driving) we get the street view cars around here, I've seen them (or it?) a few times.


the article verifies that the self-driving car is being tested in Austin, which is where I live.

it seriously amusing that some dimwitted internet 'expert' thinks he needs to disqualify what I saw with my own eyes.


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## marc7654

This is fantastic. I'm in IT, the best I do is right shell scripts with a tiny bit of logic in to install an app in the right place. I fully appreciate the "teaching moment" that happened here. Any self diving car really only has the brains of a fruit fly but that's actually fairly cool to emulate a fruit fly. Not quite as good as house files but still decent. They can still avoid being swatted out of the air. Teaching the car how to not "swat" a bicyclist will be a rather good accomplishment.


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## kiwisimon

Yeah Retrogrouch messed things up with his irrelevant post and then there were two tangents. Oxtox the OP saw the self drive car. Retro screwed the pooch and then people said his picture wasn't self driving which the OP thought was directed at his post. 

So yeah OP pics or it didn't happen


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## PBL450

Oxtox said:


> the article verifies that the self-driving car is being tested in Austin, which is where I live.
> 
> it seriously amusing that some dimwitted internet 'expert' thinks he needs to disqualify what I saw with my own eyes.


No. You are talking about different things. He isn't telling you what you saw at all. Kiwis got it. I'm not sure how you arrived at dim witted internet expert from what I posted...


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## ibericb

Oxtox said:


> the article verifies that the self-driving car is being tested in Austin, which is where I live.


If it can handle I-35 during daylight hours, it would be a great accomplishment.


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## Oxtox

PBL450 said:


> No. You are talking about different things. He isn't telling you what you saw at all. Kiwis got it. I'm not sure how you arrived at dim witted internet expert from what I posted...


I took post 6 to infer that I was horribly mistaken and that I was dealing with a Google Maps car, not a self-driving one.

if that's incorrect, I'll retract my snide comment.

simply thought it was an interesting incident, didn't intend to get in a pissing match with anyone.


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## kiwisimon

PBL450 said:


> . I'm not sure how you arrived at dim witted internet expert from what I posted...


You do have 1,469 posts, just saying. 

I like that Google's default setting is safety and not the human default which is "me first".


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## Upnorth

There are a lot of humans with less brains than a fruit fly. Now explain what happens to the person texting while at wheel of self driving car?? Cops an lawyers will have fun with that one.


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## Got Time

Someone posted an article about those "self-driving" cars in a german journal -- basically saying that he loves them but would never use one.
Why? Because he then can rely on their "defensive" programming and just take the ROW, drive agressively, and those computer controlled cars will try their best to stay out of his way...
So you basically did a "Denial of Service" attack


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## 9W9W

this thread is proof that absolutely any post has to potential to degenerate into an amusing argument about a tangential topic. stay strong RBR's!


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## Cinelli 82220

Saw a google maps car last summer while riding home from work. I followed it for a couple of blocks to get a good look at it. I don't appear in any pictures though. 

A few months ago we came up behind another one on the interstate. Then another one appeared ahead of us. Two google maps cars! Wow! Then we pulled up to pass them...and the were BING maps cars. What a crushing disappointment.


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## scott967

Who needs a Google self-driving car when you can just reprogram a Jeep?

scott s.
.


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## RRRoubaix

Oxtox said:


> a Google self-driving Lexus has been in my neighborhood for the last couple of weeks doing some road testing.
> 
> near the end of my ride today, we both stopped at an intersection with 4-way stop signs.
> 
> the car got to the stop line a fraction of a second before I did, so it had the ROW. I did a track-stand and waited for it to continue on through.
> 
> it apparently detected my presence (it's covered in Go-Pros) and stayed stationary for several seconds. it finally began to proceed, but as it did, I rolled forward an inch while still standing. the car immediately stopped...
> 
> I continued to stand, it continued to stay stopped. then as it began to move again, I had to rock the bike to maintain balance. it stopped abruptly.
> 
> we repeated this little dance for about 2 full minutes and the car never made it past the middle of the intersection. the two guys inside were laughing and punching stuff into a laptop, I guess trying to modify some code to 'teach' the car something about how to deal with the situation.
> 
> the odd thing is that even tho it was a bit of a CF, I felt safer dealing with a self-driving car than a human-operated one.


I couldn't agree more! This may be the best news for road cyclists as I've heard in quite awhile..



Marc said:


> LOL, nice.
> 
> Cars have gotten to the point where zero skill or brains is required to operate them...and consequently that is what we see on display on a daily basis...people with zero skill and brains texting while driving, who all know they shouldn't be doing what they are doing...doing it anyway.
> 
> You should have given the guys a thumbs up.


Exactly! I'd feel at least as comfortable with a computer driving as I would a distracted human. (Okay, more comfy)


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## Chain

Oxtox said:


> well, that's the point I was trying to make...
> 
> even with the potential for a computer malfunction, I'd rather trust an algorithm to protect me than some *distracted texting drunk* driver.


fixed...


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## stowie101

Thx to Oxtox on working with me on this story. Here's an explanation of what happened, if anyone was wondering.

A Cyclist?s Encounter with an Indecisive Google Self-Driving Car - Robotics Trends


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## motoricker

I live near a google office, so I have seen the google maps camera car driving near me numerous times. I keep checking the "street views" on google maps to see if I am showing up on there....but no luck yet. maybe they don't have the cameras "on".


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## mik_git

makin it big on the internet...
A Cyclist's Track Stand Befuddled One of Google's Self-Driving Cars


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## deviousalex

mik_git said:


> makin it big on the internet...
> A Cyclist's Track Stand Befuddled One of Google's Self-Driving Cars


I can't read the comments on these articles anymore as they just infuriate me. People who know nothing about the law seem to imply Otox was breaking the law, which is insane by itself. The typical "you have to put your foot down" bs. The commenters also seem to think the self-driving car had some appointment it had to be on time for instead of the point of it driving around in circles to beta test it.


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## Oxtox

deviousalex said:


> I can't read the comments on these articles anymore as they just infuriate me.


man, there's some seriously confused types posting about that article.

my fave was the guy who wanted to know if bikes still have coaster brakes...

also not sure where the idea that I'm some hipster riding fixed came from...those details couldn't be further from the truth.


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## burgrat

The Cyclingtips blog (one of the best out there) also picked up your experience and this thread! Congrats Oxtox!

Daily News Digest | CyclingTips


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## Local Hero

This is really interesting. How hard will it be to tweak this algorithm?


Google's self-driving cars might be too good at braking for cyclists


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## deviousalex

Google's self-driving cars might be too good at braking for cyclists[/QUOTE]

While the car is operating it's impossible for all-intensive purposes. A lot of these 'machine learning' algorithms depend upon lots of simulations before they are deployed.


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## JCavilia

burgrat said:


> The Cyclingtips blog (one of the best out there) also picked up your experience and this thread! Congrats Oxtox!
> 
> Daily News Digest | CyclingTips


Bicycling magazine's website has it now, too. (scroll down)Naked Bike Ride Photobombs Wedding | Bicycling


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## ibericb

A new encounter for one of Google's autonomous vehicles (no bicycle involved) :

_Cop pulls over Google self-driving car, finds no driver to ticket_


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## SauronHimself

ibericb said:


> A new encounter for one of Google's autonomous vehicles (no bicycle involved) :
> 
> _Cop pulls over Google self-driving car, finds no driver to ticket_


Cop: "License and registration please."
Car: "I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that."


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## Herbie

If my wife was riding in a self driving car, would she keep yelling look out, and telling it how to drive?


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## deviousalex

Herbie said:


> If my wife was riding in a self driving car, would she keep yelling look out, and telling it how to drive?


Well, now that a bunch of news outlets have linked to this post it's great you decided to be sexist in this conversation and add to a stereotype that cyclists are a bunch of male chauvinist freds.


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## SauronHimself

deviousalex said:


> Well, now that a bunch of news outlets have linked to this post it's great you decided to be sexist in this conversation and add to a stereotype that cyclists are a bunch of male chauvinist freds.


Kinda hasty, don't you think? Herbie referred to his own wife, and I think he knows her a lot better than any of us here. Maybe she is a backseat driver; only he can tell us for certain. Also note that Herbie didn't say "If someone's wife..." or "If a woman...". He said, "If _*my*_ wife...".


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## bmach

My wife was parked at the end of the driveway walking to the mailbox when the google map car went buy. She Ended up on google street veiw.


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## deviousalex

bmach said:


> My wife was parked at the end of the driveway walking to the mailbox when the google map car went buy. She Ended up on google street veiw.


Yeah, but they blur out faces/license plates now. My car used to show up all the time near my apartment.


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## Herbie

deviousalex said:


> Well, now that a bunch of news outlets have linked to this post it's great you decided to be sexist in this conversation and add to a stereotype that cyclists are a bunch of male chauvinist freds.


Thank you for your comment. You did jump to a conclusion in trying to be politically correct. While I was joking to an extent, in my case it is a true statement. I suspect there are a wives making this statement about their husbands as well. 

Glad we could clear that up


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## Lombard

marc7654 said:


> ........ Any self diving car really only has the brains of a fruit fly but that's actually fairly cool to emulate a fruit fly. Not quite as good as house files but still decent. They can still avoid being swatted out of the air. Teaching the car how to not "swat" a bicyclist will be a rather good accomplishment.




Fruit flies and house flies don't text while flying.


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