Public Understanding and Perception of Automated Vehicles, United States, 2018 – 2020
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Summary
This research brief examines the evolution of public understanding, trust, and concerns regarding automated vehicles (AVs) in the United States from 2018 to 2020. The study was motivated by the need to understand user behavior and adoption patterns, which remain uncertain despite the potential benefits of AV technologies for safety, congestion, and emissions. The analysis specifically investigates how perceptions shifted during this period, with particular attention to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 on public attitudes. The study utilized data from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety’s annual Traffic Safety Culture Index, a national online survey administered to U.S. residents aged 16 and older. The sample included over 3,000 respondents each year, weighted to represent the U.S. household population. Researchers analyzed self-reported understanding of AV levels (based on SAE J3016), trust in crash prevention, specific concerns (e.g., technology malfunction, hacking), perceived effectiveness in specific driving scenarios, and comfort with owning AVs. Statistical methods included descriptive cross-tabulations and logistic regression models controlling for sociodemographic variables to test for significant differences across the three years. The results indicate that while self-reported knowledge of AV levels remained stable (with nearly 70% reporting good or excellent understanding), attitudes became more positive. Trust in AVs for general crash prevention increased across all levels, with a statistically significant rise for Level 2 vehicles in 2020 compared to previous years. Concurrently, concerns about technology malfunction, over-reliance, and vehicle hacking decreased significantly for Levels 2, 3, and 4 in 2020. However, when evaluating specific unsafe behaviors or challenging conditions (e.g., distracted driving, bad weather), public expectation for lower-level AVs (Levels 2 and 3) to prevent crashes decreased over time, whereas expectations for higher-level AVs remained constant. Regarding adoption, approximately half of respondents consistently preferred owning vehicles with no automation or lower levels (Levels 0–2), even if cost were not a barrier, while interest in Level 5 vehicles remained steady at about 20%. The findings suggest that public perception of AVs is multifaceted and context-dependent. While general trust and optimism increased, skepticism regarding the capabilities of lower-level automation in specific scenarios persisted. The authors conclude that these trends underscore the necessity for continued education and training efforts. Such initiatives should target not only drivers but also other road users, focusing on the specific capabilities and limitations of each AV level to foster broader acceptance and safe integration of automated technologies into the transportation landscape.
Key finding
Public trust in Level 2 automated vehicles for crash prevention significantly increased and concerns decreased by 2020, while self-reported knowledge levels remained stable throughout the study period.
Methodology
survey
Sample size: 10620
Provenance
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| Stage | Outcome | Tool | Model | Prompt | Attempts | Completed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| discover | success | aaa_foundation | — | — | 2 | 2026-05-23 |
| archive | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-05-23 |
| extract | success | cached | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-10 |
| clean | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-01 |
| chunk | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-01 |
| embed | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-02 |
| enrich | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-05-23 |
| promote | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-05-23 |
| summarize | success | llm | qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant | summ-v5 | 3 | 2026-06-10 |
| tag | success | vector_similarity | — | — | 19 | 2026-06-11 |
| verify | success | — | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-10 |
Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-10; verification: verified.
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Information type
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- Empirical Findings: self report data, observational prevalence