[Nfbc-sj] AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES IN THE BAY AREA
Kevin Andrews
kevin.andrews94 at gmail.com
Mon Dec 10 08:02:12 PST 2018
Hey Kyle,
Great to hear you can go! I'm not sure how everyone who plans on going
thinks we should meet up once there--I was htinking ideally we all sit
together but I' not sure what to expect in terms of how things'll be laid
out. Any thoughts?
On Sat, Dec 8, 2018 at 5:20 PM Kyle Garcia <kgarcia2432 at gmail.com> wrote:
> The professor for my Thursday evening class actually suggested I take the
> final on Friday due to unrelated circumstances, so I am now available to
> attend the autonomous vehicle meeting. It would be great if we hear back
> from the national reps that Tim provided to verify that the topics and
> concerns we've mentioned line up with what the NFB is vouching for at the
> national level. I think the more of us that are able to attend the better.
>
> Those of us who will be attending should definitely coordinate to meet up
> once there, and to determine what would be the best way to make our voices
> heard (ie who wants to bring up what questions). This has the potential to
> be a big opportunity for us to get recognition for the blind as a whole
> from the Waymo representatives that will be present.
>
> Regards,
>
> Kyle Garcia
> Treasurer
> San Jose Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind of California
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Fri, Dec 7, 2018, 10:53 AM Timothy Elder <telder at trelegal.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi Adrian,
>>
>>
>>
>> It would be great to meet you at our next chapter meeting. Do you know
>> Trisha and Cricket, also current blind Stanford students?
>>
>>
>>
>> We will have our December meeting which will double as a holiday potluck
>> at Ronit's house around noon on Saturday, December 15. Please bring a dish,
>> snack or munchie if you're able in order to share with the group. We'll
>> listen to the release, eat, chat and enjoy each others' company. Nothing
>> else planned. I'm going to the autonomous vehicles public forum next Thu so
>> I'll provide an update from that though.
>>
>>
>>
>> From Ronit:
>>
>>
>>
>> The address is 927 Chabrant Way San Jose, CA 95125. There are three bus
>> lines that come to my house which are the VTA 25, 65 and 66. The 25 comes
>> right to my street and the 65 and 66 stop a few blocks away. I’d be happy
>> to meet anyone who wants to take the bus. Also, if you need to get in touch
>> with me, my cell is 909-489-7255. Texting is fine as well. Let me know if
>> you need help with the bus and I can come meet you. If you are taking Lyft
>> or Uber, my house is in the middle of my u-shaped street and is a two-story
>> house with a red door.
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>> Best,
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Timothy Elder
>> Attorney
>> TRE Legal Practice
>> 1155 Market Street, Tenth Floor
>> San Francisco, CA 94103
>> Phone: (415) 873-9199
>> Fax: (415) 952-9898
>>
>>
>> E-mail: telder at trelegal.com
>> www.trelegal.com
>>
>> Twitter: @trelegal <https://twitter.com/TRELegal>
>> *Please consider the environment before printing this email.*
>>
>> Confidentiality Notice
>>
>> This e-mail may contain confidential information that may also be legally
>> privileged and that is intended only for the use of the Addressee(s) named
>> above. If you are not the intended recipient or an authorized agent of the
>> recipient, please be advised that any dissemination or copying of this
>> e-mail, or taking of any action in reliance on the information contained
>> herein, is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error,
>> please notify me immediately by use of the Reply button, and then delete
>> the e-mail from your system. Thank you!
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> *From:* nfbc-sj-bounces at nfbcal.org <nfbc-sj-bounces at nfbcal.org> *On
>> Behalf Of *Adrian Rodriguez
>> *Sent:* Thursday, December 6, 2018 3:51 PM
>> *To:* NFB San Jose/Silicon Valley Chapter <nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org>
>> *Cc:* Lewis, Anil (ALewis at nfb.org) <ALewis at nfb.org>; Pare, John <
>> JPare at nfb.org>
>>
>>
>> *Subject:* Re: [Nfbc-sj] AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES IN THE BAY AREA
>>
>>
>>
>> Hi everyone,
>>
>>
>>
>> My name is Adrian Rodriguez and I’m a former NFB Illinois scholar and a
>> new member of the San Jose chapter. I also believe I may be an ideal
>> representative for us in this matter.
>>
>>
>>
>> I’m a legally blind computer scientist at Stanford University— I
>> graduated from the School of Engineering in 2016 and I currently work as a
>> research engineer at the School of Medicine. Moreover, I recently founded a
>> company called Group Theory whose goal is to create novel computer
>> interfaces and digital careers for the blind and visually impaired. Here’s a
>> clip from an interview
>> <https://twitter.com/AtlanticLIVE/status/1060615539490414592> I recently
>> did for The Atlantic if you’re curious about our work.
>>
>>
>>
>> Though I'm not personally affiliated with Waymo, I specialize in
>> Human-Computer Interaction for the blind, and I’ve collaborated with Google
>> in the past. My impression is that Alphabet’s companies do have open
>> channels with blind users. You may recall this video of Waymo’s first
>> blind user <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_d3MCkIvg8> from 2016. Of
>> course, we all know that this kind of coverage rarely translates to impact.
>> So we should definitely make as much noise as possible.
>>
>>
>>
>> That being said, I’d be happy to ask my friends at Google about their
>> pilot and/or represent us in any arena at any time.
>>
>>
>>
>> Please let mw know how I can help.
>>
>>
>>
>> Best,
>>
>>
>>
>> Adrian
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Dec 6, 2018, at 1:59 PM, Timothy Elder <telder at trelegal.com> wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>> All,
>>
>>
>>
>> I’ve been participating in some of the AV hearings at the California
>> PUC. My understanding is that Waymo is looking at some of these issues,
>> including being able to honk the horn from the app to locate the vehicle
>> for boarding. I still think someone should go to the event and represent
>> our interests and promote the organization. Maybe this can be leveraged
>> into getting our local chapter members into the testing program on the
>> street before it is commercially available in California, not likely for
>> another year at least. Kevin, Kyle and anyone else who wants to attend,
>> can you coordinate with John Pare and Anil Lewis from the national
>> office to ensure we are giving a consistent message? They can probably
>> give you guide points on what to emphasize at the event.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Timothy Elder
>> Attorney
>> TRE Legal Practice
>> 1155 Market Street, Tenth Floor
>> San Francisco, CA 94103
>> Phone: (415) 873-9199
>> Fax: (415) 952-9898
>>
>>
>> E-mail: telder at trelegal.com
>> www.trelegal.com
>>
>> Twitter: @trelegal <https://twitter.com/TRELegal>
>> *Please consider the environment before printing this email.*
>>
>> Confidentiality Notice
>>
>> This e-mail may contain confidential information that may also be legally
>> privileged and that is intended only for the use of the Addressee(s) named
>> above. If you are not the intended recipient or an authorized agent of the
>> recipient, please be advised that any dissemination or copying of this
>> e-mail, or taking of any action in reliance on the information contained
>> herein, is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail in error,
>> please notify me immediately by use of the Reply button, and then delete
>> the e-mail from your system. Thank you!
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> *From:* nfbc-sj-bounces at nfbcal.org <nfbc-sj-bounces at nfbcal.org> *On
>> Behalf Of *Kevin Andrews
>> *Sent:* Thursday, December 6, 2018 12:34 PM
>> *To:* NFB San Jose/Silicon Valley Chapter <nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org>
>> *Subject:* Re: [Nfbc-sj] AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES IN THE BAY AREA
>>
>>
>>
>> I hear you there. If it was earlier in the week it might be tougher for
>> me to scoot out of work before 5 as that is one of our busiest times with
>> exams next week, but Thursday should be okay. I do plan on taking the light
>> rail or Caltrain--whatever makes sense with time. I actually think it might
>> be better to do that over Uber/Lyft because traffic is probably garbage at
>> that time. Others including Kyle, let me know if you end up deciding to go.
>> Thanks.
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Dec 6, 2018 at 12:32 PM Kyle Garcia <kgarcia2432 at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> Thanks Kevin. Unless I can move my final (which really I probably can,
>> it's more so do I want to) then I won't be able to attend. I will
>> definitely think about it as the topic of autonomous vehicles definitely
>> interests me.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Dec 6, 2018, 12:09 PM Kevin Andrews <kevin.andrews94 at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> I echo the concerns that both Santiago and Kyle have raised. Pasted below
>> for your convenience, directly from the Mountain View Chamber of Commerce
>> website:
>>
>>
>>
>> Name: Forum on Self-Driving Cars
>>
>> Date: December 13, 2018
>>
>> Time: 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM PST
>>
>> Event Description:
>>
>> Waymo, formerly the Google self-driving car project, has been developing
>> this technology since 2009. These vehicles should be familiar to residents
>> of
>>
>> Mountain View and surrounding communities with Waymo testing in the area
>> for many years. Now, hear from the Waymo local policy and technical teams
>> about
>>
>> their test program and others insights on what’s next for Waymo at a
>> community forum at the Historic Adobe Building. The presentation will
>> include question
>>
>> and answer, plus a chance to view a Waymo vehicle up close.
>>
>> Location:
>>
>> Historic Adobe Building
>>
>> 157 N Moffett Blvd, Mountain View
>>
>>
>>
>> Street parking available at 157 Moffett Blvd and 100 Santa Rosa Ave.
>>
>> Public Transit: Across from Mountain View Caltrain/VTA Transit Center
>>
>> Date/Time Information:
>>
>> Thursday, December 13, 2018
>>
>> 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm
>>
>> Fees/Admission:
>>
>> Free
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Dec 6, 2018 at 12:04 PM Santiago H <
>> santiago.blue.hernandez at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> Definitely. Another possible issue I think we’ll experience if not
>> addressed soon is knowing where the driverless car is parked when
>> requesting a ride, especially for those of us with no usable sight. Not to
>> mention, knowing which driverless car is picking up which passenger will
>> also pose its challenges. A visual image of the vehicle would not help us
>> much. It’s important to have some sort of communication with someone who
>> can provide the feedback to the appropriate department within Waymo.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Dec 6, 2018, at 11:58 AM, Kyle Garcia <kgarcia2432 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>
>>
>> I would love to attend, but I'm guessing it will be in the evening and I
>> have a final from 4 to 7pm. If it happens to he mod day then I will try to
>> attend. This seems to be the newest article that mentions the meeting, so
>> I'm not sure where to find out exact location or time of it. .
>>
>>
>>
>> Hopefully Kevin can attend, it would be great to have somebody
>> representing the blind there. With driverless cars quickly approaching a
>> regular reality our ability to interact with them will be key to avoidance
>> of accidents or at minimum awkward situations where neither party knows
>> what the other one is doing. At least we can assume that a sighted driver
>> will see us and stop or get out of our way.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Dec 6, 2018, 9:17 AM Kevin Andrews <kevin.andrews94 at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> I have all intentions of going up there. Anyone know what time this thing
>> is at? It is important we have our voices heard. We might also get somebody
>> from the city there and we can talk to them about getting involved.
>>
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Dec 5, 2018 at 12:22 PM Brian Buhrow <buhrow at nfbcal.org> wrote:
>>
>> hello. Below is a story from the San Jose Mercury News about
>> Waymo's
>> plans to begin testing fully driverless cars in Bay Area cities in the
>> next
>> few months. Mountain View is supposed to be holding a public hearing
>> regarding Waymo's plans on December 13 of this year. that's a week from
>> tomorrow, thursday the 13th. I can't be at that meeting, but I think we
>> should have a representative there. I'm excited by the possibility of
>> being able to use an autonomous vehicle, but I'm a bit frightened at the
>> prospect of being a pedestrian interacting with a car that has no
>> driver. I
>> really want to know how they behave, how to know when the thing is about
>> to
>> take off, stop, turn, etc. While I can't see, I often use hand gestures
>> to
>> signal to drivers what my intentions are. that helps them know what I'm
>> doing. And, in many cases, if there's confusion, the driver will roll
>> down
>> their window and we'll chat to get things straightened out. I realize
>> these are issues that sighted drivers and pedestrians will have to deal
>> with as well, but I think Waymo and other companies should know we're
>> here.
>> For example, I read a story about the driverless testing going on in
>> Texas,
>> referenced in the article below, where the solution to pedestrian
>> confusion
>> about what the cars were doing was to put an LED display on the front of
>> the vehicle with messages about what the car wanted. For example, if the
>> car was waiting for a pedestrian to cross in front of it, it would put up
>> a
>> sign saying it was waiting for pedestrian crossing. Such a solution
>> wouldn't work in my case, nor other blind pedestrians who might be
>> traveling near these vehicles.
>> In any case, if anyone can get to this meeting in Mountain view
>> next
>> week, I'd be very interested in knowing what they have to say. Even
>> better, if it gets us some contacts in Waymo, that would be awesome!
>>
>> -thanks
>> -Brian
>>
>>
>>
>> https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/11/27/is-silicon-valley-ready-for-fully-autonomous-waymo-vehicles/
>>
>>
>>
>> Is Silicon Valley ready for fully autonomous Waymo vehicles?
>>
>> By Levi Sumagaysay | lsumagaysay at bayareanewsgroup.com | Bay Area News
>> Group
>> PUBLISHED: November 27, 2018 at 5:30 am | UPDATED: November 27, 2018 at
>> 10:34 am
>>
>> Waymo, the first company to get approval from the Department of Motor
>> Vehicles to test fully self-driving vehicles on California roads, faces
>> questions and concerns galore as it prepares to roll out the cars in
>> Silicon Valley.
>>
>> For example, what happens if one of its vehicles -- which won't have a
>> driver behind the wheel -- gets into an accident?
>>
>> The self-driving Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid, equipped with a two-way
>> cellular communication link, will notify Waymo's fleet-response
>> specialists. Those specialists will call 911 if needed. Then Waymo will
>> send a response team to help passengers and first responders on the
>> scene.
>>
>> That's what Waymo has shared on its website and with police, including
>> officers in Los Altos, one of the cities where the company will be
>> doing the testing.
>>
>> "Waymo has been very proactive and very cognizant of community
>> concerns," said Captain Scott McCrossin of the Los Altos Police
>> Department.
>> Waymo will test fully driverless vehicles in the Silicon Valley cities
>> within the blue area marked in this map. The company got DMV approval
>> in October, but it has not indicated publicly when testing will begin.
>> (Courtesy Waymo)
>>
>> Waymo first talked to Los Altos city officials in April, when the
>> company submitted an application to test its fully driverless vehicles
>> to the DMV. In late October, the DMV approved Waymo's application for
>> testing in five cities. Besides Los Altos, the cars will be tested in
>> Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Sunnyvale and Palo Alto.
>>
>> The Alphabet-owned company has not publicly announced when testing will
>> begin, and the cities say they have not been informed of a timeline.
>>
>> But Waymo has been engaged in various levels of outreach, according to
>> those cities' representatives and correspondence included in the
>> company's application with the DMV.
>> * Waymo held a safety training for first responders in September
>> where the company explained its safety and law-enforcement
>> interaction protocols, McCrossin said. In September and October,
>> Waymo held public forums in Los Altos and Los Altos Hills.
>> * Over the summer, Waymo displayed a self-driving vehicle at the
>> Sunnyvale library. In September, the company was at a tech expo
>> downtown. And Waymo has held a training session with the city's
>> public-safety officials.
>> * In Palo Alto, there's a public forum scheduled Nov. 27 at 6 p.m. at
>> the Cubberley Community Center, where residents will hear from
>> Waymo and get a chance to ask questions. The police department is
>> in talks with the company about scheduling a meeting.
>> * Mountain View has asked the other cities to meet on Dec. 6 and is
>> planning a public forum Dec. 13. Mountain View police recently met
>> with Waymo, and they are talking about a future training session.
>>
>> Is that outreach enough? In Silicon Valley, Google/Waymo's self-driving
>> cars with drivers behind the wheel have been a common sight for a long
>> time. Each accident involving the vehicles -- 17 so far this year --
>> has been documented, as required by the DMV. But despite Waymo's years
>> of testing, its move to fully driverless vehicles on public roads
>> concerns some Silicon Valley residents.
>>
>> "I followed a Waymo on Castro, the principal street in Mountain View,
>> and it proceeded at 12 mph (in a 25 mph zone) with a queue of cars
>> behind and caught us all at a red light," John Joss said last week. "It
>> then turned right after stopping but only gave a turn signal after it
>> had stopped. Severely dumb."
>>
>> The 84-year-old Mountain View resident added that when a Waymo vehicle
>> reaches the intersection of Cuesta and Bonita Avenue, "it goes into a
>> state of fibrillation, saying, `oh, we can't go, we can't turn!'
>>
>> "It's too soon" for fully autonomous vehicles, Joss said.
>>
>> Other residents agree. Karen Brenchley said she recently saw a Waymo
>> vehicle make a right turn from a left-turn lane.
>>
>> "I'm like, `Did that really happen'?" said the 55-year-old Sunnyvale
>> resident, who has a master's degree in computer science and works in
>> artificial intelligence. "Thirty years ago I took an AI class in grad
>> school. One of the things we wrote was how to change lights based on
>> traffic patterns. We're still trying to figure that out. How long have
>> we had self-driving cars? I'm delighted that they're doing what they're
>> doing, but I think they're not ready."
>>
>> The company is hearing people's concerns. In September, Barbara
>> McCarthy of Los Altos saw a Waymo vehicle fail to stop at an
>> intersection with a flashing light, which means pedestrians were
>> getting ready to cross. She was concerned enough that she contacted
>> Waymo.
>>
>> "They were very helpful," McCarthy, 67, said. She spoke with a
>> community manager by phone and email. That made her feel like Waymo
>> will take residents' concerns into account, she said.
>>
>> In Phoenix, Waymo has been testing a fully autonomous program since
>> April 2017. There, Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid minivans shuttle
>> early-rider volunteers to work, school, the mall and elsewhere. The
>> company has signed up more than 400 riders since it began the program,
>> and a recent report indicates that it will start a new driverless car
>> service in the area next month -- although there will be safety drivers
>> behind the wheel of those vehicles, a spokeswoman confirms.
>>
>> In Silicon Valley, Waymo's first testers will be its own employees.
>> Then it will open up the program to members of the public, as it has
>> done in Arizona. The company will test vehicles day and night on city
>> streets, rural roads and highways with speed limits of up to 65 miles
>> per hour. The DMV approved testing of 39 vehicles, all Chrysler
>> Pacifica Hybrids.
>>
>> Waymo started as Google's self-driving car division in 2009 before it
>> was spun off as a standalone subsidiary in 2016. Last month, Waymo CEO
>> John Crafcik boasted that its vehicles had reached 10 million miles
>> driven on public roads in 25 cities.
>>
>> Merely having all those miles under its belt is not enough, some
>> critics say.
>>
>> "The DMV is letting Waymo turn all of us into human guinea pigs for
>> testing their robot cars, without an adequate explanation of what's
>> going on," said John Simpson, Privacy and Technology Project director
>> for Consumer Watchdog, a longtime Google critic, in a statement at the
>> time the California DMV announced its approval of Waymo's permit.
>>
>> In an interview, Simpson expressed concern about Waymo's plan for
>> remote "drivers" who will be monitoring the vehicles. A Waymo
>> spokeswoman would not say how many vehicles at a time each remote
>> driver will be watching.
>>
>> "It's like they're playing a video game," he said, "but if something
>> goes wrong, somebody might get killed."
>>
>> Consumer Watchdog also is urging the DMV to release more information
>> about Waymo's insurance coverage, pointing to redactions in its
>> insurance documents.
>>
>> But DMV spokesman Marty Greenstein said Waymo has met the agency's
>> requirements: "The insurance information was redacted from Waymo's
>> public application because it was deemed to relate to confidential
>> business strategies that have competitive significance."
>>
>> This story has been updated with additional information about Waymo's
>> upcoming driverless car service.
>> _______________________________________________
>> Nfbc-sj mailing list
>> Nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org
>> https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/nfbc-sj
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>> Best,
>> Kevin Andrews
>> Email: kevin.andrews94 at gmail.com
>> Mobile Telephone: (248) 508-8569
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Nfbc-sj mailing list
>> Nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org
>> https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/nfbc-sj
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Nfbc-sj mailing list
>> Nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org
>> https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/nfbc-sj
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Nfbc-sj mailing list
>> Nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org
>> https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/nfbc-sj
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>> Best,
>> Kevin Andrews
>> Email: kevin.andrews94 at gmail.com
>> Mobile Telephone: (248) 508-8569
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Nfbc-sj mailing list
>> Nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org
>> https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/nfbc-sj
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Nfbc-sj mailing list
>> Nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org
>> https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/nfbc-sj
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>> Best,
>> Kevin Andrews
>> Email: kevin.andrews94 at gmail.com
>> Mobile Telephone: (248) 508-8569
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Nfbc-sj mailing list
>> Nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org
>> https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/nfbc-sj
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Nfbc-sj mailing list
>> Nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org
>> https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/nfbc-sj
>>
> _______________________________________________
> Nfbc-sj mailing list
> Nfbc-sj at nfbcal.org
> https://nfbcal.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/nfbc-sj
>
--
Best,
Kevin Andrews
Email: kevin.andrews94 at gmail.com
Mobile Telephone: (248) 508-8569
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://nfbcal.org/pipermail/nfbc-sj/attachments/20181210/3d583661/attachment.html
More information about the Nfbc-sj
mailing list