Most feel uncomfortable, but they do also tend to believe such vehicles will one day be as safe as human-driven cars
Eagle-eyed Londoners may have seen some of the first self-driving cars winding their way around the capital’s streets over the last six months, with Waymo vehicles taking part in trials since April.
A YouGov international survey has looked in detail at attitudes to driverless cars, but with large metropolises like London set to serve as the initial markets for such vehicles, we replicated part of our survey in the capital as well.
- For Londoners’ attitudes towards self-driving public transport – buses, trains and Tube – see this study’s sister article here
- For the attitudes of the wider British population towards self-driving transport – as well as in other countries – see here
Only three in ten Londoners are comfortable with riding in a self-driving car
However, a new YouGov survey shows that the majority of Londoners are – for now – uncomfortable with the prospect of riding in a driverless car. Almost six in ten (59%) say they would feel uncomfortable being chauffeured by a robotic vehicle, including 32% who would be “very uncomfortable”.
A significant minority (29%) say they would be comfortable riding in a self-driving car, although this includes only 7% who would feel “very” at ease doing so.
Male Londoners are notably more comfortable with the prospect of riding in a driverless car (36%) than their female counterparts (23%), while older Londoners (those aged 65 and above) are significantly more sceptical, with 71% feeling uncomfortable (including 53% very uncomfortable).
These age and gender differences are present across all questions we asked about self-driving road vehicles for this study.
Londoners are likewise concerned about sharing the road with self-driving cars, buses and lorries
While Londoners are of course free to avoid using the services of self-driving car companies, road users in the capital will nevertheless find themselves sharing space with such vehicles in the future – so how comfortable do they feel about this prospect?
The figures are very similar to those for riding in a driverless car: 60% of Londoners, and 65% of those who drive at least once a week in the capital, say they are uncomfortable with the prospect of sharing the streets with self-driving cars.
Other forms of self-driving road transport are of greater concern still. Two thirds of Londoners (67%) and seven in ten frequent drivers (71%) say they would be uncomfortable sharing the road with driverless buses, while self-driving lorries are troubling to 74% and 78% respectively.
Indeed, even Londoners who are comfortable with the idea of riding in a self-driving car are troubled by the prospect of sharing the road with self-driving lorries, with 51% saying this makes them feel uncomfortable. This is in contrast to 39% who are comfortable with the idea of driving on the same streets as self-driving lorries, although this is still significantly higher than the London average.
Likewise, this group are much more likely to be comfortable with sharing the roads with self-driving buses (59%) and self-driving cars (75%).
By contrast, attitudes among the most frequent drivers in the capital do not differ substantially from the overall London figures.
Londoners tend to think self-driving cars will one day be as safe as human-driven cars
While residents of the capital may for now feel uncomfortable with the prospect of self-driving cars on the capital’s streets, half (51%) say they do believe that self-driving technology will one day be good enough that they will be as safe as human-operated cars.
However, 31% don’t expect that self-driving cars will ever be able to match human levels of safety.
Unsurprisingly, those who are comfortable with the idea of riding in a self-driving car are particularly likely to think the technology will one day be as safe as human-driven cars, at 85%.
Even among those who are currently fairly uncomfortable with the prospect of a ride in a driverless car, 55% think the technology will be equally safe one day. However, this falls to just 19% among those who say they are very uncomfortable with the idea of taking a self-driving car.
Methodology
- Sample size: An online survey of 1,005 adults aged 18+ living in London
- Fieldwork: 17-24 July 2026
- Commissioned by: YouGov
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