¡Vamos!: Observations of Pedestrian Interactions with Driverless Cars in Mexico

Rebecca Currano, So Yeon Park, Lawrence Domingo, Jesus Garcia-Mancilla, Pedro C. Santana-Mancilla, Víctor M. González, Wendy Ju

Abstract: How will pedestrians from different regions interact with an approaching autonomous vehicle? Understanding differences in pedestrian culture and responses can help inform autonomous cars how to behave appropriately in different regional contexts. We conducted a field study comparing the behavioral response of pedestrians between metropolitan Mexico City (N=113) and Colima, a smaller coastal city (N=81). We hid a driver in a car seat costume as a Wizard-of-Oz prototype to evoke pedestrian interaction behavior at a crosswalk or street. Pedestrian interactions were coded for crossing decision, crossing pathway, pacing, and observational behavior. Most distinctly, pedestrians in Mexico City kept their pace and more often crossed in front of the vehicle, while those in Colima stopped in front of the car more often.