Background
In the early years of the 20th century, owning a car is a status symbol. Vehicle models became essential in shaping the materialistic culture of human. Driving a motor car is a technology that requires the unity of the mind and body (i.e. feet and hand). Such unity facilitates the necessary adjustments needed which is equated to perception—a translation of intentions. The late 20th century marks the link between cars and driving to society and sociality that makes society at the current historical moment. That cars are essential in the transportation is unquestionable. Cars offer privacy as a venue for people to express themselves through a series of practices. Through the years, the growth of the use of car is also accompanied with the growth of activities in the car while moving (Grieco and Urry, 2011).
Communication technologies have rapidly advanced its way over time. Statistics showed how the number of people subscribing to the internet and mobile phones rose over the years. Since the advent of the internet and mobile phones, the number of subscriber dramatically risen six folds (from 350 million to 2 billion) and eight folds (from 750 million to 6 billion) respectively. Projections from 2025 suggested that most of the people inhabiting the earth are able to access all of the world’s information using a device that is just the size of their hands. If this rapid pace of technological advancement is kept, about 8 billion people are expected to be online. This means that connectivity will be available in the different strata of the society at a lower cost (Schmidt and Cohen, 2013).
Moore’s Law suggests that there is an exponential trend in the advancement of technology—the backbone of every computing device in technology industry doubles in speed every 8 months. Similarly, fiber optics doubles at about every 9 months. Given this properties on advancement, the concept of a self-driven car or driverless car may not be a technical possibility anymore. This self-driven car—a “thought-controlled, robotic motion, artificial intelligence (AI) and fully integrated augmented reality” promises an optical connection of actual information to our physical environment (Schmidt and Cohen, 2013). Two years ago, Google introduced the driverless cars Toyota Prius. Their latest project Lexus RX450h which features roof mounted laser range finders logged about 300,000 miles on all kinds of roads. However, Google is admits that its driverless automobile is still a young technology which requires intensive research to attain its goal of perfecting a car that drives like humans (Fountain, 2012). The company by far has developed software that augments the self-driving car technology. They have developed sensors to gather data about the car's environment, processors, algorithms, driving decisions, and actors that control car movements. Radars, cameras, digital encoders, accelerometers, GPS devices and lidars are already being used to gather more information for safety concerns (Fountain, 2012).
“Safer Roads”
Technocrats believe that the driverless automobile is more about evolution than revolution. The technology is about building a better feature upon existing features—making cars safer and easier to drive whilst the driver is still in control. Research in this field of technology is indeed fast accumulating. Transportation experts believe that self-driving cars are on its way in the years to come to offer an array of potential benefits in road used such as reducing the statistics of car accidents (Leggett, 2013).
Based on the projection of World Health Organization, more than 1.2 million people across the world die every year in road accidents while 50 million are injured. In the US alone 60% of car crashes were attributed to weaving out of the lane, and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and other distractions (Nasaw, 2012). According to scientists, robot drivers react faster than humans. These robot drivers do not have a blind spot (i.e. 360 degree perception) unlike humans and do not get distracted, sleepy or intoxicated which are the main factors of getting into car accidents (Markoff, 2010). Thus, feasibility of the driverless car as introduced by Google has been seen as a promising solution to address the growing risk of fatalities in the roads.
One of the benefits of having a driverless car includes a more productive commute; that is, you could focus on your other task while travelling because the car would make decisions on how you behave on the road. Because Google cars adhere strictly to speed limit and rules of the road, one can expect a smooth sailing traffic flow. The car does not speed, cut off and tailgate during self-driving mode. In the future, people can expect innovations on communications with other autonomous cars on changing lanes and overtaking. Self-driven vehicles could also extend mobility services for those people who are too old to drive and for people who suffer from weak eyesight or slow reflexes. The service also extends to people having epilepsy, paralysis, broken limbs and other disabilities and to, children and drunkards using their phones as a control device for drop off and pick up. Google also features that their self-driven car can be used for long journeys. The self-driven car design is just beginning to kick off and technocrats will continue to explore new directions towards technological change that seem fitting for the human race. These designs will be in harmony to the national road design standards which include factors such as shoulder width, curvature radius, line of sight and stopping distance (Nasaw, 2012).
With cars powered with artificial intelligence, creating also an intelligent road will speed up the mobility of society. The design of intelligent road features lane, distance and time compression. Lane compression saves space as it requires lanes just as narrow as the vehicles—it showcases shifts in lane widths to accommodate vehicles of different sizes and shapes. Since the car is automatically operated by robots distance between bumpers can be compressed to mere inches. Travel speed will also be improved since smart roads offers an increased in speed—higher speed means fewer number of vehicles on the road at a given time. Intelligent highways will be able to accommodate 10-20 times more vehicle as compared today since space and time are compressed. More passengers will benefit from this setting. Further, if cars can monitor road conditions, road repairs could be easily made before such becomes a hazard. High-speed coatings and surface repairs may be developed in roads to reduce disruption from repair crews and make the flow of vehicles smooth sailing. Snow and ice will also have little effect on traffic flow when deicer is applied to roads according to Frey (2012). Markoff (2010) noted that since cars are controlled electronically and time travel is compressed, few cars would only be needed, thus parking spaces will be reduced alongside with the use of fuel.
The Downside
Several facets of driverless cars have been presented positively to include saving lives, extension of mobility of older populations, and reduction in environmental hazards. However, it also presents a downside or a challenge to the end users, the economy and even in drafting laws and policies. Consumers become less aware of the car performance which is the main point of buying a car. Because people have become dependent of the technology, the focus of car marketing would be diverted to the style, interior and comfort rather than the functionality of the car. The technology may also compromise the security of very important people such as the president of the state. It violates the very notion of privacy since the idea of owning a car is private in the first place (Ghosn, 2013).
The introduction of the technology may affect the jobs of taxi, bus, and truck drivers. It can also affect the auto-insurance industry. Rather than buying a car and worrying about all the liabilities of maintenance, and insurance, consumers will opt to purchase the said mode of transportation. Because of this the number of vehicles sold will drastically decline and there will be a tendency for huge companies to monopolize the market. The market for such car may not be cost effective for both the producer and lay consumer because of the expensive sensors, computing power and software added to the car per se (Markoff, 2010; Frey, 2012). The primary end goal for producers is to make profit out of this market and safety is only of secondary concern.
More complicated problems in terms of legislation may seem to rise with the introduction of self-driven cars. The law has to adapt to changes whenever technology alters the human capacity. Some of the issues include the right to privacy and data protection law. Law transcends in all aspects of life and robot injury, liabilities to virtual property, libel cases for algorithms are some of the cases that are on the roll for debate. While technology aims for a utopian vision in the future, conflicts with regard to property, contracts, liability and so forth are inevitable.
Self-driving cars can go haywire. Thus it has the capacity to hurt us, but there are certain instances when a court decides that the owner should be liable. The law may impose duties on robotic cars such as maintenance. Such negligence on the part of the owner could relieve the manufacturers from lawsuits. But the line of negligence is still blurred. Many current technologies are disruptive to the law and our way of life. Many existing laws have been reduced to obsolescence because of such changes in the way information is shared for instance in this day and age. Hence, there is a need for laws to be revised carefully to ensure equal rights.
Conclusion
References
Fisher, R. (14 September 2013). Future Law. New Scientist, 219(2934): 40-43.
Fountain, H. (28 October 2012). Fountain, Henry. Yes, Driverless Cars Know the Way to San Jose. New York Times Company. Retrieved from: http://bi.galegroup.com.libaccess.sjlibrary.org/essentials/article/GALE|A306607337/8038ca10b3e27220a16690
Ghosn, C. (20 April 2013). Driverless Cars: Look, No Hands. The Economist Newspaper Limited. Retrieved from: http://www.economist.com/news/special-report/21576224-one-day-every-car-may-come-invisible-chauffeur-look-no-hands.
Grieco, M. and Urry, J. (2011). Mobilities: New Perspectives on Transport and Society. Surrey, England: Ashgate Publishing Ltd.
Leggett, T. (21 March 2013). What if a Robot Drove Your Car? BBC News. Retrieved from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21804352.
Nasaw, D. (10 May 2012). Driverless Cars and How They Would Change Motoring. BBC News Magazine. Retrieved from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-18012812.
Schmidt E. and Cohen, J. (2013). The New Digital Age: Reshaping the Future of People, Nations and Business. Toronto: Knopft, Borzoi Books.
Markoff, J. (9 October 2010). Smarter Than You Think: Google Cars Drive Themselves, in Traffic. The New York Times Company. Retrieved from: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/10/science/10google.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&.
Frey, T. (2012) Driverless Highways: Creating Cars That Talk to the Roads. Journal of Environmental Health, 75(5): 38-40.
