Integrating Multi-Stakeholder Communication into Autonomous Vehicle Trolley Problem

While rare, it is widely accepted that autonomous vehicles (AVs) will find themselves in dilemma scenarios involving vulnerable road users (VRUs). The ethics of these dilemma situations have been debated extensively in the context of trolley problem-like scenarios. What has not been noted is the inherent unfairness implicit in many of these discussions in which VRUs are seen as passive by-standers with no say as to what befalls them. Rather than simply remaining still in a collision scenario, VRUs can (and often do) take action that needs to be accounted for. If we are to increase fairness on public roads, it is important that AVs communicate with VRUs. This paper presents a highly theoretical discussion on the possibility of using communication tools (such as the V2X system) and techniques (derived from the science of human-machine interaction) to elicit positive responses from VRU during inevitable AV collisions. The paper begins with a brief ethical exploration of fairness in the context of current debates surrounding AV collisions. We progress to discuss possible technical solutions to AV-VRU communication, as well as the types of audio, visual, and tactile communication strategies necessary in critical scenarios.