Several of today’s cars already offer a type of autonomous driving. These systems require the driver to pay attention, but what about the future?
If we ever get to a time when fully autonomous driving is a reality, several benefits will present themselves. Currently, many drivers fear cars that can drive without human intervention, but that could change as these cars prove to be safe, reliable, and capable. Once we reach that point in the automotive industry, autonomous driving will be a real thing, and these vehicles will offer some incredible benefits.
Roads should be much safer
Most of the collisions and accidents on the roadways occur because of driver error. In fact, driver error is the cause of 94 percent of the crashes. Many of the errors would be eliminated by self-driving cars. Vehicle systems can’t get fatigued, won’t be distracted, and won’t engage in risky and dangerous driving behavior. Sure, it’s fun to drag race your friends, but it’s an unsafe activity that shouldn’t be done with more than 2,000 pounds of metal. Self-driving cars should make the roads much safer, ensuring fewer accidents.
Traffic congestion will be reduced
Slowdowns and backups on the roadways occur because of human error. One driver slowing down without warning can cause a ripple effect and cause many other cars to slow down. Autonomous driving can reduce this problem and make driving much smoother. With less congestion, fewer accidents will take place, cars will drive along smoothly, and people will have a better idea of how to arrive where they want to go on time more often. It’s anticipated that self-driving vehicles can reduce congestion-related delays by up to 60 percent.
Lessened environmental impact
Cars sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic burn more fuel and emit pollution much more than those traveling down a wide-open highway. Exhaust fumes cause much of the air pollution problems faced in many large cities. When self-driving vehicles are the norm, this wasted fuel and added pollution in heavy traffic will be reduced. It’s estimated that fuel consumption could be reduced by as much as 10 percent when automation is the norm, and vehicles can drive without a human driver behind the wheel.
People can be more productive
If the car is doing all of the driving and you don’t need to pay attention to what’s going on, you can do other things while traveling in your car. In addition to being able to do stuff while on the road, autonomous driving will get you places much sooner than normal, which improves time getting to and from various locations. You’ll get to work on time, arrive at the mall sooner, and can easily improve your productivity while riding in a car that can drive you around without your intervention.
Autonomous driving enables the immobile to become mobile again
Some people have reached an age where they shouldn’t drive, and others have disabilities that prevent them from being able to get around and live their lives. Self-driving vehicles allow people who are immobile to become mobile. Using ride-sharing helps reduce the cost of a vehicle and could be part of single transportation that helps ensure people can live their lives with the desired level of independence. Between affordable mobility and self-driving, these vehicles could change many lives.
Less land dedicated to roadways
It’s a long way off, but when all vehicles on the road are self-driving, less land will be necessary to create roads. These vehicles can operate closer together than cars driven by people, which means it’s not necessary to have wider roads to allow more vehicles to drive. In fact, these cars can drive so close together that some four-lane highways could likely be reduced to two-lane versions with a center-turning lane. If self-driving cars are used for ride-sharing, less land is required for parking lots as well.
Delivery can be done without drivers
Some might not appreciate the idea that delivery drivers could be out of a job, but autonomous driving could mean delivery companies are much more efficient. Instead of driving the truck, the person in the vehicle can simply walk the packages to the door and ride in a seat closer to the packages. This makes it much easier on the person carrying the boxes and can make for a much safer drive for the vehicle.
Autonomous driving could be the future of time on the road. If cars can drive themselves reliably, we don’t need to get behind the wheel and can expect things to get better in terms of fewer accidents, better traffic patterns, greater productivity, and improved mobility.
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