Over the last year, there's been growing enthusiasm for the future of driveless cars. The NYTimes has a good survey piece on how this could reshape cities.
While I do not think it will have a big impact on surveillance, I do think it could be revolutionary for society at large.
For instance, if cars can drive themselves, many, if not most people, would not even need to own cars (and people who had multiple could, at least, reduce to one). Everyone else could simply call a car when they specifically needed it. Considering, most people only drive for tens of minutes or a few hours a day, the potential savings seem immense.
Here's some claims from the NYTimes article:
- No more looking for parking.
- "That city of the future could have narrower streets because parking spots would no longer be necessary"
- "Inner-city parking lots could become parks."
- "Some city planners expect that the cost of homes will fall as more space will become available in cities."
- "I could sleep in my driverless car, or have an exercise bike in the back of the car to work out on the way to work"
Anyone particularly excited or skeptical about driverless cars?