A Diverless Future?
People seem to be the #1 cause for bad traffic. Over 12 million people in the Los Angeles Metro area means lots and lots and lots of cars. Most of us could sit in traffic for a living (my commute is an hour in each direction). Human error causes chain reactions which cause traffic jams (at least that’s my unofficial analysis of why we get bad traffic).
Enter the Driverless Car.
Google has one, Audi has one, Tesla Motors almost has one and more and more car manufacturers are claiming to have them in the works. A few states have already begun legalizing them . By most accounts, they’re dramatically safer than human drivers. Some people fear them, others (like myself) think they can’t get here fast enough.
We actually have some studies that some private sector folks have done suggesting that the combination of autonomous and connected vehicles would potentially reduce our fatalities by 80 percent — that is a pretty significant number when you consider we have almost 33,000 fatalities on the road every year. — All Tech Considered, NPR.org
What might a driverless future really look like?
I imagine blazing fast freeways with clusters of cars wirelessly linked hurtling through our city freeways. I imagine cross country trips where everyone can nap and play games without being concerned with who’s driving. I imagine safer streets, less traffic in cities and more opportunities for cleaner air in our cities. I imagine a civilization where most people don’t feel the need to purchase a car, but instead subscribe to an Uber-like autonomous car service. I imagine less car accidents and fatalities. I imagine more freedom to do the things we want to do without having to worry about how we’re going to get there.
Some say we’ll be there by 2020, others say it will be decades before it’s truly a reality. Either way, I don’t think we can get there fast enough. This is my dream anyway. Will it come true? Time will tell.
