There’s a continuum between a car with autonomous driving capability when required (Otherwise, you can drive it yourself) to almost personalized public transit, where you call up self-propelled vehicles have dedicated rights of way and can pick up and drop you off in a range of destinations unimpeded by pedestrians or human-piloted vehicles.
there was a recent article about carmakers worried about computer-controlled vehicles being “bullied” by human drivers taking advantage of their literal adherence to laws and safety measures and safe distances.
Or one fellow mentioned that he “took control” of his car to swerve into the other lane as it arrived behind a double-parked delivery vehicle “because otherwise it would just sit there waiting instead of changing lanes”.
And the classic question - would a computer controlled car choose your life over several pedestrians if it had to make a decision?
So…what year do you predict that the US government will no longer allow non-autonomous cars to be produced and sold (as new cars) in the US?
I highly doubt that non-autonomous cars will be outlawed, but by eliminating their production and sale in the US, much like other mandated safety features, that the number of non-autonomous cars will dwindle and become fewer and fewer and eventually antique cars. So when do you believe this mandate will occur if ever?
And a clean vehicle in general…one without an ice cream cone upside down on the seat. Who is going to check all these driverless vehicles between riders? Or will you just have to report an unfit car when it arrives and then order another one?
“When you pry the steering wheel from my cold dead fingers”…I can hear it now. When the authorities start trying to limit where human drivers can drive, for safety and efficiency reasons, it will get political real quick.
I’ll go with the opposite angle - more and more streets - especially high speed expressways - will ban human-controlled cars. As self-drive starts to take advantage of computer control, things like merge and traffic lights will be handled precisely. No need for a traffic signal as cars negotiate right of way with minimal slowdown zooming through crossroads or left turns, just missing cross traffic. A human in that environment is a hazard… not to the self-drives but because there’s a risk they will encounter another human and assume it is another computer controlled vehicle. First will be the ban on cars without transponders and active avoidance on some roads. Then will come the ban on human control altogether. Eventually you’ll be limited to a few suburban and isolated rural roads’ maybe human vehicles will have to have a flashing red light on top to warn other humans. Then the transponders will disable your car if you try to use computer roads.
We won’t even talk about the ability to do variable tolls based on miles and traffic levels…
Somewhat related: these past few weeks, my Android phone has started detecting when I enter a mall and putting up a notification listing the various shops inside. This may be a first step to build up their data on where the Radio Shack is located inside the mall, so that eventually their cars will know where to park or which door to use.
My personal car isn’t just transportation. It’s also [George Carlin Voice] a place for my stuff[/GCV]. If I’m running multiple errands it’s not practical, and in some cases it’s not even possible to carry everything on my person for the entire trip.
Voice command or touch screen interface seem to be the obvious answer. “park over there next to the blue jeep” would allow one to select the desired spot, but then again get dropped off by the door and let the car park itself, or go to a gas station while you are away, smart phone command for it to be picked up.
Not all of us want strangers using our cars, even if it reduces our cost of ownership. I don’t mind driving rental cars of uncertain provenance, but my car is MY car; I don’t want to have to take my iPod out of the center console every time I get out, and whatever else I might have in the trunk (e.g. emergency winter clothing). All the scratches and stains on it are mine; I can afford to own a car all on my own without putting up with unknown people using it.
As soon as you order a car the company knows who you are, where you live, etc. Interior cameras and microphones will record your activity inside the car. If a car arrives dirty or damaged you will just click a button and that car will return for maintenance billed to the previous rider and another call will arrive for you.
That system would work flawlessly, if you assume a threshold for “dirty” that all riders can recognize. However, consider the following scenario.
First rider, A, eats in the car and spills some mustard on the seat.
B, riding next, doesn’t notice the mustard or doesn’t really care.
Then C notices the stain, hits the report button, and B will be charged for cleaning the mustard stain.
And if this sort of scenario is known by all riders, then it will make everybody more prone to report tiny little problems, because if they don’t report they become liable.
The post by md2000 to which you replied mentioned “high speed expressways”. Generally, bicycles are not permitted on these and it’s possible that human-driven motorcycles would also not be permitted, in a future in which the vast majority of powered vehicles are self driving.
