Today’s post comes to us from fellow ignition interlock provider, LifeSafer.
January 1st will be a big day for UK’s road transportation. That’s when self-driving cars will be allowed on public roads there. And the UK is not alone in ceding the roads to unpiloted cars: Nissan is testing self-driving cars on Japan’s roads, and about a hundred cars without drivers are soon to navigate the streets of Gothenburg, Sweden. In the USA, Google’s self-driving cars are legal in three states, and legislation is pending in many others.
Egged on by German, French and Italian automakers, who are chomping at the bit to get the technology out of the lab and into their showrooms, the UN Convention on Road Traffic agreed to back self-driving cars a few months ago. The automakers foresee big business.
Back in the UK, Business Secretary Vince Cable called self-driving cars a “transformational technology” that will open up “new opportunities for our economy and society.”
Just what are these opportunities? Certainly there will be advantages for drivers who find it inconvenient or impossible to operate cars:
- Disabled people who aren’t able to drive, including the blind, will be able to enjoy the convenience of being able to get anywhere by themselves
- Tired commuters can snooze on the way home
- Having a few drinks at a bar will not mean choosing between begging for a lift home or risking the lives of other drivers
- People who are simply bad drivers – and they do exist – can give us all a break and let the computer do the driving
Another question that arises is whether or not these self-driving cars can transform the economy? Perhaps, but not in the way that Vince Cable envisions. One suspects that those “new opportunities” will involve getting rid of the job description of “driver.”
This means that some people will no longer be earning paychecks:
- Taxi and limousine drivers
- Disabled van drivers
- Pizza and takeout delivery people – a mobile app will tell you when your 12-inch Supreme is parked outside
- Anyone driving short-haul transport: airport baggage cars and passenger movers
When Henry Ford devised a way to mass-produce the automobile, it was indeed a transformational technology that created new industries and opportunities for employment: gas stations, auto repair shops, motels, etc. But these industries aren’t likely to see another spike in income when self-driving cars take over the road.
So what will happen when driving becomes an optional pastime, like horseback riding? Will there still be work for professional drivers?
Maybe that’s a question for your local blacksmith.