7 Reader Comments

1. gandalfSVGArs Praetorian
   I think this is probably one of the most exciting developments in motion today. It has the ability to generate as much leisure time as the advent of washing machines did for our parents and grandparents. People will be able to read, talk, even sleep or play guitar during hours that heretofore have been utterly wasted. Not to mention the very-likely precipitous drop in DUI accidents once a majority of the car fleet has turned over.
   
   Unfortunately, there's a downside, which is that it may slow the progress of urbanization and the fight against uncontrolled sprawl and pollution. If cars are no longer such a huge trade-off, companies may think nothing of requiring 3 hours of commuting for their workers.
   
   edit: typo
2. psdArs Scholae Palatinae
   gandalfSVG wrote:

   I think this is probably one of the most exciting developments in motion today. It has the ability to generate as much leisure time as the advent of washing machines did for our parents and grandparents. People will be able to read, talk, even sleep or play guitar during hours that heretofore have been utterly wasted. Not to mention the very-likely precipitous drop in DUI accidents once a majority of the car fleet has turned over.
   
   Unfortunately, there's a downside, which is that it may slow the progress of urbanization and the fight against uncontrolled sprawl and pollution. If cars are no longer such a huge trade-off, companies may think nothing of requiring 3 hours of commuting for their workers.
   
   edit: typo

   
   
   My guess is most people will not realize more leisure time because they get car sick unless they are looking out the window.
3. EtrnL_FrostArs Praefectus
   psd wrote:

   gandalfSVG wrote:

   I think this is probably one of the most exciting developments in motion today. It has the ability to generate as much leisure time as the advent of washing machines did for our parents and grandparents. People will be able to read, talk, even sleep or play guitar during hours that heretofore have been utterly wasted. Not to mention the very-likely precipitous drop in DUI accidents once a majority of the car fleet has turned over.
   
   Unfortunately, there's a downside, which is that it may slow the progress of urbanization and the fight against uncontrolled sprawl and pollution. If cars are no longer such a huge trade-off, companies may think nothing of requiring 3 hours of commuting for their workers.
   
   edit: typo

   
   
   My guess is most people will not realize more leisure time because they get car sick unless they are looking out the window.

   
   
   There's also the idea that for an unknown amount of people (unless someone's got a statistic somewhere), driving already is leisure time. As long as the automated driving experience isn't forced into that segment, that's great. But, like many things, more than likely, these people will be saddled by the costs associated with a platform that they don't want...
4. xcodemustdieSmack-Fu Master, in training
   psd wrote:

   My guess is most people will not realize more leisure time because they get car sick unless they are looking out the window.

   Depends on what you're doing, I get motion sickness very easily. In 30 seconds I feel sick if I'm reading anything but unless its a windy road I can watch a film for hours.
   Jump in your car watch the morning news on the way to work, sounds good.
5. SKuypersSeniorius Lurkius
   EtrnL_Frost wrote:

   psd wrote:

   gandalfSVG wrote:

   I think this is probably one of the most exciting developments in motion today. It has the ability to generate as much leisure time as the advent of washing machines did for our parents and grandparents. People will be able to read, talk, even sleep or play guitar during hours that heretofore have been utterly wasted. Not to mention the very-likely precipitous drop in DUI accidents once a majority of the car fleet has turned over.
   
   Unfortunately, there's a downside, which is that it may slow the progress of urbanization and the fight against uncontrolled sprawl and pollution. If cars are no longer such a huge trade-off, companies may think nothing of requiring 3 hours of commuting for their workers.
   
   edit: typo

   
   
   My guess is most people will not realize more leisure time because they get car sick unless they are looking out the window.

   
   
   There's also the idea that for an unknown amount of people (unless someone's got a statistic somewhere), driving already is leisure time. As long as the automated driving experience isn't forced into that segment, that's great. But, like many things, more than likely, these people will be saddled by the costs associated with a platform that they don't want...

   
   
   This brings in the question: are we willing to trade in less traffic accidents for slightly reduced pleasure? Because no matter which way you look at it, that self driving car is way less likely to get into an accident than that human driver.
   
   Another thing that needs to be considered when more and more cars become autonomous is that we'll need less cars. Right now a car's life mostly consists of standing still. With fully automated cars however this no longer needs to be the case. Hence it opens the door to there being less cars, which leads to less space taken by parked cars. And there is a huge possibility in integrating self driving cars with public transport, boosting the utility of the latter. Imagine having to be at a meeting at 10am and just dialling in your destination and time of arrival. The system calculates the fastest and most efficient way to the end location and that just might include a voyage by train. Arriving at the end station another car will be waiting to bring you to the doorstep of your final destination. Sounds pretty cool to me
6. spamthejabroniSmack-Fu Master, in training
   I cant help but think of the sheer number of engineers working on the sensors and logic built into each vehicle, and traffic shaping software such as some sort of near/mid field communication mesh network that would optimize traffic flow while reducing the traffic jams and incidents of accidents.
   
   Kick starter anyone.
   Maybe just a subreddit t-shit with a snippet of code.
7. CobraA2Wise, Aged Ars Veteran
   Quote:

   Another thing that needs to be considered when more and more cars become autonomous is that we'll need less cars. Right now a car's life mostly consists of standing still. With fully automated cars however this no longer needs to be the case.

   
   
   Thanks to public transportation, this has never really been the case.
   
   However, the concept of ownership of private transportation is so strong that the USA never really became a public transportation nation. Sure, it's available, but I still see nearly everybody owning privately owned vehicles.
   
   I think some people are seeing self-driving cars as being a purely utilitarian issue, when automobiles have never truly been utilitarian. It's a big cultural phenomenon, with personal ownership of an automobile being equated with freedom, personal expression, and status.
   
   I see a teenager driving a car in a city with public transportation - that teen is expressing freedom.
   
   I see a car with custom wheels, custom body work, and custom paint - that driver is showing personal expression.
   
   I see an expensive, luxurious car - that person is expressing status.
   
   Self-driving cars will equally need to consider freedom, personal expression, and status if they are to be successful.
   
   Cars aren't just a utilitarian means of getting from point A to point B. They are an expression of our culture. Self-driving cars will likewise need to acknowledge that they will be an expression of our culture, if they are to succeed.