Car crashes are a preventable public health crisis. Autonomous electric vehicles—like Waymo’s robotaxis—offer a safer, cleaner path if cities and businesses act now.
Car Crashes Are a Public Health Crisis
1.19 million people were killed in road traffic crashes worldwide in 2022.
That’s not a niche “transportation issue.” That’s a public health crisis bigger than many diseases we fund entire global programs to fight. In the US alone, roughly 40,000 people die in car crashes every year, and over 2.5 million are injured. Most of those crashes are caused by human error: distraction, fatigue, speeding, and alcohol.
Here’s the thing about autonomous cars, especially electric robotaxis: they’re not just a convenience or a tech novelty. They’re a public health intervention and a green technology solution rolled into one. And we finally have real-world data that shows what happens when you take human error out of everyday driving.
Waymo, Alphabet’s autonomous driving company, has released detailed safety data from millions of miles of driverless operation. The results point in one clear direction: properly deployed autonomous vehicles (AVs) can cut serious crashes dramatically. If we care about climate, health, and urban quality of life, this matters right now, not in some far-off sci‑fi future.
This post breaks down why car crashes are a public health emergency, what the data from Waymo and other early AV deployments actually shows, how autonomous electric vehicles fit into the wider green technology story, and what businesses, cities, and insurers should be planning for today.
How Dangerous Are Human-Driven Cars, Really?
Human driving is far more dangerous than most people realize, because the risk is spread across billions of trips.
- Globally, road traffic injuries are a leading cause of death for children and young adults.
- In many countries, crashes cost 3–5% of GDP when you add medical care, lost productivity, congestion, and property damage.
- In the US, motor vehicle crashes cost over $300 billion annually when you factor in both direct and indirect costs.
And underneath those big numbers is a simple fact: about 90–95% of crashes involve human error. That’s distraction from smartphones, driving too fast for conditions, misjudging gaps, falling asleep, or driving under the influence.
From a public health lens, anything that reduces human error at scale is a powerful intervention. Seat belts, airbags, and crumple zones did it in the 20th century. Autonomous driving is the 21st‑century upgrade.
What Waymo’s Data Tells Us About Autonomous Safety
Autonomous vehicles are often discussed in the abstract. Waymo’s data finally gives us something concrete.
The core result
Waymo has reported that across millions of fully driverless miles in cities like Phoenix, San Francisco, and Los Angeles, its autonomous cars experienced far fewer police-reportable injuries and crashes than human drivers operating in the same environments.
The pattern is what matters:
- Fewer injury-causing crashes per mile than human-driven vehicles
- Dramatic reductions in specific high-severity crash types like:
- Intersection collisions from running red lights or failing to yield
- Rear-end crashes caused by distraction
- Side-swipes and unsafe lane changes
The reality: an autonomous driving system doesn’t text, drink, fall asleep, or drive angry. It watches 360 degrees, all the time, and follows a rules-based model that’s tuned to avoid risk.
Why these numbers are so powerful
Waymo’s operating design domain is still limited: specific cities, specific conditions, geofenced zones. So this isn’t a magic switch that makes all human driving disappear tomorrow.
But for the miles they do handle, the data already supports a strong claim: autonomous robotaxis can reduce serious crash risk in those areas today. If each autonomous mile is safer than a comparable human mile, then scaling those miles is a straightforward way to reduce injuries and deaths.
That’s why safety data transparency is so important. Waymo has started to share; other companies in autonomous driving and advanced driver-assistance should follow. Public health decisions, city permits, and insurance models all get easier when the numbers are on the table.
Why Autonomous EVs Belong in the Green Technology Playbook
Autonomous driving isn’t just about safety; it slots directly into green technology and sustainable cities strategies.
1. Robotaxis can cut emissions per trip
Most commercial autonomous fleets today, including Waymo’s, are electric vehicles. That changes the emissions math:
- An electric robotaxi on a clean or decarbonizing grid has far lower lifecycle CO₂ emissions than a typical gasoline car.
- When those robotaxis are shared, they increase vehicle utilization. One car can do the work of several private cars, especially in dense urban areas.
- Fewer vehicles, used more intensively, means:
- Lower manufacturing footprint per passenger-kilometer
- Less parking infrastructure
- Freed-up urban space that can be turned into bike lanes, trees, and housing instead of asphalt.
From a sustainability perspective, the real prize is fewer cars doing more work, not just swapping every gas car for an EV. Autonomous electric robotaxis are a practical way to move in that direction.
2. Smoother, smarter driving uses less energy
Autonomous systems excel at:
- Gentle acceleration and braking
- Consistent following distances
- Predictive speed management based on traffic and signals
All of that lowers energy consumption per mile and cuts local air pollutants like NOx and particulates from tire and brake wear.
Pair autonomous control with smart charging and you get another green tech win: fleets that charge when the grid is cleaner and cheaper, supporting renewable energy integration instead of straining the grid at peak times.
3. Public health beyond crash avoidance
Public health isn’t just about avoiding impact trauma. Autonomous EV fleets contribute more subtly too:
- Lower tailpipe emissions (or none, for EVs) reduce asthma, cardiovascular disease, and premature deaths linked to air pollution.
- Fewer cars and less aggressive driving reduce noise pollution, which is strongly associated with stress and sleep disruption.
So when we talk about autonomous cars as “the cure,” we’re really talking about a bundle of health benefits: fewer crashes, cleaner air, calmer streets.
The Coming Shake-Up: Insurance, Regulation, and Responsibility
If autonomous vehicles are safer, the economics of risk have to change. That touches auto insurance, liability, and regulation.
Auto insurance gets flipped
Right now, auto insurance pricing revolves around human behavior:
- Age, driving history, and credit score
- Annual mileage and claims record
In a world where a growing share of miles is driven by an autonomous system:
- Risk shifts from millions of human drivers to a small number of software stacks and hardware platforms.
- Instead of underwriting individuals, insurers will underwrite fleets and algorithms.
- Premiums for human drivers may rise (relative riskier segment), while premiums per autonomous mile may fall as safety data piles up.
Businesses that move early—insurers, fleet operators, mobility startups—can build new products around:
- Usage-based insurance priced per autonomous mile
- Integrated insurance baked into a robotaxi fare
- Commercial coverage for AV fleets working in logistics, deliveries, and urban mobility
Regulators and cities have homework
Cities and regulators can’t sit on the sidelines waiting for “perfect” data:
- Crashes today are already a crisis.
- We do have enough early evidence to start structured pilots and create performance-based rules.
Smart policy focuses on outcomes, not hype:
- Require safety performance reporting (crashes, disengagements, near-misses)
- Tie operating permits to demonstrated improvements over human baselines
- Incentivize electric autonomous fleets, not fossil-fueled ones
The goal isn’t to rubber-stamp every AV program. It’s to create a framework where the safest, cleanest systems scale, and underperformers get fixed or sidelined.
Addressing the Big Concerns About Autonomous Cars
Skepticism around autonomous vehicles is healthy. There have been high-profile incidents involving both robotaxis and human-supervised driver-assist systems, and those matter.
But we need to compare system-wide statistics, not anecdotes. A single crash involving an autonomous car makes headlines; the 100 fatal human crashes that same day barely register.
“Are self-driving cars really safer?”
The honest answer today:
- In well-defined operating areas, the best autonomous systems are already safer per mile than average human drivers.
- They’re especially strong at eliminating the most preventable, high-severity crash types.
- They’re not perfect, and they behave conservatively, which can frustrate other drivers—but caution is a feature, not a bug, when the goal is public health.
“What about edge cases?”
Edge cases—odd scenarios the system hasn’t seen—will always exist. But:
- Autonomous systems generate massive data sets from every mile driven.
- Each incident becomes training data that improves the entire fleet, not just one driver.
Compare that to human learning: one driver might get better after a close call, but that lesson rarely spreads beyond a small circle. Software can.
“Is this taking away jobs?”
Some driving jobs will change or disappear; that’s real and shouldn’t be hand‑waved away.
But if you work in:
- Electric vehicle manufacturing and maintenance
- Charging infrastructure
- Software, safety validation, or fleet operations
- Urban planning, mobility services, or insurance innovation
…autonomous EVs are a growth engine. As a green technology series, we’re seeing more organizations ask how to reskill drivers into higher-value roles in these new ecosystems.
How Businesses and Cities Can Act Now
If you’re responsible for sustainability, mobility, risk, or urban planning, waiting for a mythical “fully mature” AV market isn’t a strategy.
Here are concrete moves you can make today.
For businesses and fleets
- Run pilot projects with autonomous EV services in your logistics or employee transport, where available.
- Measure both safety and emissions per mile; don’t treat them separately.
- Work with insurers open to usage-based and fleet-level products tailored to mixed human/AV operations.
- Start including autonomous readiness in your long-term fleet procurement plans.
For cities and public agencies
- Prioritize electric autonomous shuttles or robotaxis in areas with high crash rates and poor public transit.
- Make data-sharing a condition of AV permits: crash data, near-miss data, emissions, and accessibility metrics.
- Tie AV deployment to Vision Zero and climate goals, not just “innovation branding.”
- Use early projects to reclaim space from private parking and wide car lanes for green infrastructure and active mobility.
For insurers and risk managers
- Develop new products that treat autonomous miles and human-driven miles differently.
- Partner with AV operators to access real-time safety and telematics data.
- Build internal expertise in autonomous systems risk—software, sensors, cybersecurity.
The organizations that adapt first will shape how safe, clean mobility rolls out rather than being forced to react later.
The Bigger Picture: Autonomous EVs as Public Health Infrastructure
Most companies, and honestly most governments, still treat autonomous cars as a tech story or a transport story. That’s too narrow.
Autonomous electric vehicles are:
- A public health tool that cuts crashes and pollution
- A green technology that accelerates decarbonization of transport
- A data-rich platform that can help design safer streets
Waymo’s safety data is an early, but important, proof point that software-driven mobility can outperform the average human driver. As other operators publish credible statistics, the case will only get stronger.
This matters because every year we delay scaling safer, cleaner mobility, tens of thousands more people die on the roads and millions get sick from polluted air. We don’t need perfection to act; we need better than the status quo, and autonomous EV fleets are already there in the places they run.
If your organization is working on sustainability, smart cities, or public health, it’s time to treat autonomous electric mobility as part of your core strategy—not a side project.
The question now isn’t whether autonomous EVs are coming. They’re already here, operating quietly in a growing number of cities. The real question is: will you help shape how they’re used—to save lives, cut emissions, and redesign our streets—or watch from the sidelines while others do?