‘Totally irresponsible’: Mixed reaction after man caught allegedly asleep in self-driving Tesla on QEW

Locals and drivers are reacting after someone captured a man, who appears to be asleep, behind the wheel of a Tesla operating on autopilot at high speeds on the QEW on Friday morning.

Driverless cars are permitted on Ontario roads as of 2019, but operators are not allowed to sleep behind the wheel. Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) said the man could have experienced a medical episode but had the incident been reported, charges could have been laid against the driver.

It raised questions and sparked debates. Some argue that it’s dangerous regardless of the feature. Others see it as perfectly safe — as long as the vehicle drives itself; what could go wrong?

“I think the person is totally irresponsible,” one woman said on Friday. “When you buy a self-driving car, you should be alert. If anything happens, you can quickly turn the wheel and turn on the brakes. If somebody thinks they’re going to buy a self-driving car and sit there and sleep if they’re tired, that is totally wrong.”

The woman says Tesla should clarify that these people can’t fall asleep behind the wheel.

“That man should be thrown in jail.”

Another man was asked if he would buy a Tesla — or a self-driving car — if he knew he couldn’t be asleep while behind the wheel.

“I would. It’s not intended for you to fall asleep. I am sure his intention wasn’t to fall asleep,” he said. “What are you going to do?”

Another man’s rationale is relatively simple. He says that you can’t always trust technology, noting that falling asleep behind the wheel of a car on autopilot mode is a bad idea.

“If I use [autopilot] as an aid, it’s useful,” he said. “But if I actually use it to (shirk) on my responsibility to drive, then it’s bad.”

Another woman said sleeping behind the wheel is a ridiculous thought, but that wouldn’t stop her from buying a Tesla.

“You should not be driving behind [the wheel] thinking, ‘hey, I should sleep,'” she said. “I would still purchase it, but that would not be something I would ever partake in, personally.”

Self-driving cars not legal in Ontario, TPS says

The only Canadian province to allow driverless vehicles is Ontario, announcing a pilot program in 2019 that allows driverless cars on provincial roads.

By law, participants in Ontario’s automated vehicle pilot program can test driverless cars on public roadways, but under strict conditions, including a requirement to have a driver present for safety reasons.

In 2019, then Ontario Transportation Minister Jeff Yurek said that anyone driving a vehicle with any level of automation must be attentive and obey all laws.

Const. Sean Shapiro of Toronto Traffic Services says truly self-driving cars are not yet legal in Ontario, mentioning six levels of driver automation from zero to full driving automation.

“Currently there are only level 2 technology is being sold in Ontario. They require the driver to be actively supervising the vehicle operation,” Shapiro said in an email to CityNews.

“Again, to be clear, the driver is still responsible for the safe operation of the motor vehicle at all times.”

Const. Shapiro says sleeping in a vehicle would constitute as careless, regardless of a collision. Level 2 technology vehicles also do not acknowledge stop signs.

“Additionally, stunt driving would be appropriate if the driver chooses to sit in a seat other than the driver’s seat,” Shapiro said. “They do not do much more than stop if the vehicle in front of them is stopping and following the road.”

Tesla’s website notes that the autopilot component “enables your car to steer, accelerate and brake automatically within its lane.” It also states that autopilot features require “active driver supervision and do not make the vehicle autonomous.”

While in autopilot mode, drivers must be alert and active, Tesla says. According to “That Tesla Channel,” a self-described go-to resource for information on Tesla, the vehicle’s feature is not meant to be driven without human supervision or input.

“The next step in Canada will be to get the complete suite of Tesla’s fully self-driving features into the hands of Canadian citizens for beta testing,” said Tesla expert Greg Gottfried.

“Once the testing on the features is completed, and the system is optimized, then it will need to be approved by Transport Canada before it will be widely available to all Canadian Tesla customers.”

The office of Ontario’s Transportation Minister did not respond to CityNews’ request for comment.

With files from Michael Ranger of CityNews