With more and more traffic on the road every year many companies are researching technology to reduce accidents, with the ultimate goal of introducing a driverless car. One such company is Bosch, which commissioned a survey into drivers attitudes towards driverless vehicles.

The results show that while 29% of drivers would consider buying an autonomous car, the majority are still uncertain about the technology – 71% wouldn’t consider buying one and just over half – 53% – would feel unsafe in one – although men are more trusting of the tech than women.It’s early days for the driverless car, though. The underlying technologies designed to assist drivers and improve safety are better received – 69% are happy with drowsiness detection systems, 68% are happy with predictive emergency braking, 66% are happy with adaptive cruise control and 60% are happy with lane departure warnings.

Younger drivers, aged between 18 and 34, are happier with the idea of using a driverless car or a car fitted with safety equipment than those over 55 years old. That, coupled with the fact that the technology is far from ready for production cars – means by the time it hits showrooms it might be more well received.

Peter Fouquet, president of Bosch UK said: “Our research clearly shows consumers have confidence in driver assistance technologies such as Driver Drowsiness Detection.  With each innovation, we move a step closer to the goal of accident-free and fully automated driving.”