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Ontario Provincial Police charged a driver with careless driving after finding them asleep behind the wheel of a self-driving Tesla on Highway 417 during rush hour.
By Hermes Vector
Ontario Provincial Police say a driver was charged with careless driving after being spotted asleep at the wheel of a self-driving vehicle on Highway 417 in Ottawa on Tuesday afternoon during rush hour traffic.
OPP Const. Michael Fathi said officers observed a driver sleeping at the wheel while the car was rolling through traffic. The officer pulled close to the Tesla to capture body camera footage, and the vehicle’s proximity sensor may have alerted the driver, who then woke up and pulled over.
Fathi said the vehicle’s driving was not faulty, but the law requires a driver to maintain due care and control of a motor vehicle, even autonomous driving ones.
"We have certainly seen this in collisions before where people have fallen asleep at the wheel. But, to my knowledge, this is the first time we’ve laid a charge for somebody sleeping while driving," Fathi said.
Fathi said police are seeing similar cases more often. On Monday, a driver was charged for watching a video on his phone while the vehicle was in autonomous mode. Earlier this year, a driver was charged for using a laptop while the vehicle was in autonomous driving mode.
The driver faces a careless driving charge, which, upon conviction, carries a penalty of $490 and six demerit points.
OPP reminded drivers on social media that even though a vehicle has an autonomous driving feature, drivers are still required to pay due care and attention when behind the wheel.
The case highlights that self-driving or driver-assistance features do not remove a driver’s legal responsibility to remain awake, alert, and able to take control of the vehicle if something happens.
Sources
This article was drafted with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Company claims are reported as claims. Cover image is AI-generated.
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