While driverless cars aren’t quite with us yet, that hasn’t stopped experts from making plenty of speculations about what life could be like with them.
Many of these predictions have focused on the negative; for instance, fears that autonomous vehicles could single-handedly destroy the insurance industry, or that they could be programmed to harm humans.
However, while the potential is there, it’s important to remember that driverless cars could also save motorists a heck of a lot of hassle. Insurance specialists Adrian Flux have offered their own take on the ways that driverless cars could impact the lives of the average commuter, and some of them look pretty helpful.
1. Speed cameras
If a world dominated by robotic self-driving cars seems a little, well, apocalyptic, then you can at least rest easy in the knowledge that you won’t even get a speeding ticket.
Thanks to driverless cars, speed cameras will become a thing of the past. If you think that autonomous cars will all be slow, you might be wrong. In theory, robotic cars will be able to drive much faster on our roads thanks to their improve awareness, reaction speed and communication.
Therefore, you’ll get all the high-octane excitement of pushing 90 on the motorway without having to worry about any of those dreaded yellow boxes looming on the horizon.
2. Refuelling
According to their engineers, driverless cars will be able to drive themselves to the nearest refuelling point to recharge their electric batteries.
It’ll save us humans time, effort and quite a considerable amount of money if we no longer have to refuel our cars. Perhaps petrol stations could be repurposed as coffee and donut stations to refuel us instead of the car?
3. Road rage
Thanks to the fact that it’s the car that’s doing the driving, it’ll take a lot of the pressure off drivers and reduce road rage, if not eliminate it altogether.
Say goodbye to tailgaters, overtakers and non-indicators, and instead welcome to an era where we’ll be able to hold polite and civilised chats over in-car Wi-Fi. It’ll save a lot of stress and hassle, but more importantly it could also save lives.
4. The driving test
Remember those test-day jitters when you were wishing that you could get anybody to take your driving exam in your place? Well, with cars that can drive themselves, you possibly won’t even need to take the test at all.
Sure, it might put your local driving instructor out of business, but for the average motorist it’s one less thing to worry about, plus less rules and signage to learn and memorise.
5. Map reading
Find yourself regularly arguing with your partner in the car over whether it’s left or right, or fighting a losing battle against a sat-nav that’s determined you drive off a cliff?
No more with driverless cars, which will know exactly where they’re going at all times, even if neither you nor your partner do. Of course, off-roading is an entirely different story altogether, but here’s hoping you don’t encounter that too often…
6. Traffic jams
Ride-sharing driverless cars will mean fewer cars on the road, and therefore fewer traffic jams. Add in the fact that autonomous vehicles will automatically be able to avoid accidents and keep the correct spacing between each other and gridlock could become a thing of the past.
On the flip side? You’ll no longer be able to blag to your boss that you were “stuck in traffic” after having a sneaky extra half-hour in bed…
7. Mum & Dad’s Taxi Service
Good news for parents as the days of mum and dad acting like the local taxi service will be gone forever.
Simply hail your nearest robot taxi and it’ll take your kids to wherever they need to go. Even better news is that they could also potentially eradicate the incessant “Are we there yet?” that punctuates family road trips.
Instead of having to focus on the driving, you can instead spend your time sleeping, chatting or reading a book. With in-car Wi-Fi, you could even stick on a film and enjoy a few hours well-earned peace and quiet.
8. Car thieves
Stealing a car used to be so simple. Just get your coat hanger, your piece of string and jimmy open a window. Oh, how times have changed.
In a decades’ time, the average common crook will probably need at least a degree in computer science in order to successfully make off with a driverless car that’s packed with anti-theft and anti-hacking technology.
Likewise, it’ll probably be a little on the pointless side sticking a gun to the car’s heading and ordering it to take you wherever you want to go.
9. Bad parkers
Fed up of those inconsiderate people for whom one parking space in your local supermarket is never enough? Luckily, driverless cars will be so precise at parking that all you’ll have to do is remember to get out when it’s arrived.
On the downside, no more hilarious pictures of awful drivers rolling their cars outside Asda, but that’s a price we reckon the public is willing to pay.
10. Drivers
Well, this one’s kind of in the name, really. If a car can drive itself then there’s realistically little need for a slow, accident-prone human to sit at the wheel.
Whether this is a good thing or not is entirely up to you. Obviously, as car fans, we’d miss the days when we can take our cars for a swift spin around some twisty B-roads, but for the less performance-inclined, the chance to not have to worry about driving could be welcome.
