A method of maintaining occupant awareness in a vehicle, the method comprising: autonomously controlling, by an autonomous control system connected to one or more processors, operation of the vehicle; determining, by the one or more processors, a location at which an occupant within the vehicle is gazing; generating, by the one or more processors and when the determined location indicates that the occupant is not gazing in a direction in which the vehicle is traveling, one or more contextual images depicting a forward view of the vehicle assisting the occupant in maintaining awareness of a context in which the vehicle is currently operating; determining, by the one or more processors, that the vehicle is no longer able to autonomously control the operation of the vehicle; determining, by the one or more processors, a visual emphasis score based on a closing rate of each object surrounding the vehicle in conjunction with a notification from another vehicle that such vehicle is braking; adjusting, based on the visual emphasis score, the transparency of the contextual images comprising the forward view that is associated with a condition in the scene; presenting, by a display and based on the determined location, the one or more contextual images proximate to the determined location within the cabin of the vehicle, to assist the occupant in assuming control of the vehicle; determining, by the one or more processors, a duration before handoff of control of the vehicle to the occupant; presenting the one or more contextual images for the determined duration; and after presenting the contextual images, transferring, by the one or more processors, control of the operation of the vehicle to the occupant. autonomously controlling, by an autonomous control system connected to one or more processors, operation of the vehicle; determining, by the one or more processors, a location at which an occupant within the vehicle is gazing; generating, by the one or more processors and when the determined location indicates that the occupant is not gazing in a direction in which the vehicle is traveling, one or more contextual images depicting a forward view of the vehicle assisting the occupant in maintaining awareness of a context in which the vehicle is currently operating; determining, by the one or more processors, that the vehicle is no longer able to autonomously control the operation of the vehicle; determining, by the one or more processors, a visual emphasis score based on a closing rate of each object surrounding the vehicle in conjunction with a notification from another vehicle that such vehicle is braking; adjusting, based on the visual emphasis score, the transparency of the contextual images comprising the forward view that is associated with a condition in the scene; presenting, by a display and based on the determined location, the one or more contextual images proximate to the determined location within the cabin of the vehicle, to assist the occupant in assuming control of the vehicle; determining, by the one or more processors, a duration before handoff of control of the vehicle to the occupant; presenting the one or more contextual images for the determined duration; and after presenting the contextual images, transferring, by the one or more processors, control of the operation of the vehicle to the occupant.