Public Trust & Adoption of Self-Driving Cars

Thanks for sharing your views on self-driving cars! Your responses are completely confidential and anonymized. This will take about 5-6 minutes and covers your experiences, concerns, and what it would take to earn your trust.

In the last 12 months, what has been your closest experience with self-driving or partially self-driving vehicles?

• I've ridden in or driven a car with hands-free highway driving or similar features
• I've ridden in a fully driverless taxi or shuttle
• I've only seen them in the news or online
• I have no experience with them at all

Overall, how much do you trust a fully self-driving car (no human at the wheel) to safely handle everyday city and highway driving?

How much do you agree with each statement about self-driving cars?

Which of these would do the most to increase your trust in self-driving cars — and which would matter least?

• Years of public crash-rate data showing they're safer than human drivers
• A clear rule for who is liable in a crash (manufacturer, owner, or software company)
• Being able to take manual control at any moment
• Government safety certification and regular inspections
• Seeing them operate safely in my own neighborhood for a long time
• Lower insurance costs for self-driving vehicles
• Transparency about how the car makes split-second decisions

Thinking about a monthly subscription for full self-driving capability on a car you already own, please answer the following.

• At what monthly price would this feature be so cheap you'd question whether it's safe or reliable?
• At what monthly price would this feature be a bargain — a great deal for what you get?
• At what monthly price would this feature start to feel expensive, though you'd still consider it?
• At what monthly price would this feature be too expensive to ever consider?

Would you let a fully self-driving car take your child to school alone (with no adult in the car)?

• Yes, without hesitation
• Yes, but only after it had a strong long-term safety record
• Only for short, familiar routes
• No, not under any circumstances I can currently imagine

Probe the reasoning behind the respondent's trust score for fully self-driving cars: ask for a specific moment, story, or piece of information that shaped that number. If they mentioned liability, data privacy, or safety in the earlier statements, press for a concrete example of what would need to change their mind. If they said they'd never let a self-driving car take their child alone, ask what evidence (if any) could change that.

How likely are you to regularly ride in or own a fully self-driving car within the next 5 years?

Last, a few quick optional details to help us compare views across groups.

Which age range best describes you?

• 18-24
• 25-34
• 35-44
• 45-54
• 55-64
• 65+
• Prefer not to say

How would you describe your gender?

• Woman
• Man
• Non-binary
• Prefer to self-describe
• Prefer not to say

Which best describes where you currently live?

• Urban city center
• Suburban area
• Small town
• Rural area
• Prefer not to say

That's everything — thank you! Your answers will feed into a report on public trust and pricing expectations for self-driving technology, without any personally identifying details attached.