No ticket, no driver: Police stop Google self-driving car

<p>If the idea of getting pulled over for driving too slow seems strange to you, imagine getting pulled over for not driving at all.</p><p>That's what happened to a <a href="https://plus.google.com/+SelfDrivingCar/posts/j9ouVZSZnRf" target="_blank">Google self-driving car</a> when it was stopped for going 24 mph in a 35 mph zone, according to the <a href="http://mountainviewpoliceblog.com/2015/11/12/inquiring-minds-want-to-know/" target="_blank">Mountain View Police Department</a>. (Video via <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCezICQNgJU&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">Google</a>)</p><p>There was a passenger in the car, though. And once the officer realized it was self-driving, they took the opportunity to educate the person about impeding traffic. The car was reportedly going <a href="http://mountainviewpoliceblog.com/2015/11/12/inquiring-minds-want-to-know/" target="_blank">slow enough to back up traffic behind it</a>.</p><p>The question of driver responsibility — for cars that aren't being driven by drivers — has been a big part of the conversation around autonomous vehicles. And there's still a lot to work out legally.</p><p><a href="http://recode.net/2015/11/12/google-self-driving-car-gets-pulled-over-doesnt-get-a-ticket/" target="_blank">A writer for Re/code points out,</a> "The question of who gets the ticket if a self-driving car does commit a violation is still pretty gray." For now, <a href="http://www.digitaltrends.com/cars/automaker-responsibility-in-self-driving-car-accidents-news/" target="_blank">Google has said the company will accept liability</a> if it's the technology's fault.</p><p>And <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-34808105" target="_blank">the BBC notes</a> that it "raises questions about whether the cars ... are too cautious."</p><p>In a statement, the Mountain View Police Department still said it was lawful for the car to be driving where it was. As for Google, the company says the cars have <a href="https://plus.google.com/+SelfDrivingCar/posts/j9ouVZSZnRf" target="_blank">never gotten a ticket</a>.</p><p>Google caps the <a href="https://plus.google.com/+SelfDrivingCar/posts/j9ouVZSZnRf" target="_blank">speed of the prototype</a> at 25 mph. In <a href="https://plus.google.com/+SelfDrivingCar/posts/j9ouVZSZnRf" target="_blank">a statement</a>, Google said part of the reason for the conservative speed limit is to make the cars "feel friendly and approachable."</p><p>"Getting these cars out into the public and allowing people to react to them and allowing us to see them out there, I think that's a huge deal. And most importantly, it's the necessary step to getting them to try it themselves," the director of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCezICQNgJU&feature=youtu.be" target="_blank">Google Self-Driving Car Project</a> said.</p><p>So Google doesn't seem to be shying away from these kinds of interactions. In response to the stop, the <a href="http://mountainviewpoliceblog.com/2015/11/12/inquiring-minds-want-to-know/" target="_blank">Mountain View Police Department</a> pointed out it meets regularly with Google to address road safety. (Video via <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdgQpa1pUUE" target="_blank">Google</a>)</p>