Cars that drive themselves while you sit back during your commute to work are just around the corner, according to an international expert visiting Adelaide this week.
Former VP at General Motors and adviser to the Google Car Self-Driving Car Project, Larry Burns will be leading discussions about what travel will look like in the years to come at RAA’s Future Mobility Forum on 6 August.
“The future of transportation is really exciting and cars that drive themselves are much closer than many people realise,” said Mr Burns.
Common problems, like finding a car park or dealing with peak-hour congestion could become a thing of the past.
“In the future, cars will become lighter, cleaner and “smart” enough to avoid crashes and traffic jams,” said Mr Burns.
“Their connectivity will mean they can collect and share data on traffic conditions and coordinate their movements to keep traffic flowing smoothly.”
In the future, Mr Burns says there’ll be a need to transform the car to base it on electric–drive and wireless communication in addition to petrol and the internal combustion engine.
“Things like telematics in vehicles are turning cars into ‘connected cars’ that can communicate with things along the road and with other vehicles,” said Mr Burns.
“It’s here already, whether it’s in your navigation system or your Bluetooth, and if you combine that technology with autonomous vehicles – they’ll literally drive themselves.
“Many vehicle manufacturers, as well as Google, are looking at those technologies and seeing how far they can push them to create cars that drive themselves.”
At the moment our cars spend 90 per cent of the day idle; either in a car park at our workplace, or at home in the garage.
“To ensure our national vehicle fleet is providing us the greatest benefit, potentially many of us will share the same car – so while you’re at work, someone else could make use of it during the day,” said Mr Burns.
“These sleek cars will also benefit the environment, running clean on electricity and hydrogen and potentially even pump energy back into the electrical grid when they’re idle.”
RAA General Manager Public Affairs Penny Gale said it’s fantastic to have an expert like Larry Burns in Adelaide to look at ways South Australia might be able to take advantage of these new technologies.
“South Australia’s manufacturing industry has gone through a lot in recent years, particularly as we move towards the imminent exit of all vehicle manufacturing in SA by 2017,” said Ms Gale.
“The ideas we’re talking about here might create new opportunities for our local motoring industry, whether we build the driverless cars here in SA, or build the robots that will help build those vehicles. It shows a lot of promise.
“The Future Mobility Forum is all about creating a conversation in South Australia about how our mobility needs will continue change in the years to come, and how we can ensure we take the necessary steps now to stay mobile and connected throughout the community in the future. “
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