The race for autonomous driving vehicles continues to intensify across the world as people seek more convenient and secure daily commutes.
Uber and Google-backed Waymo are already operating self-driving cars in select locations. Automakers like Tesla and Mercedes-Benz have also started developing partially autonomous cars for private ownership. According to TechCrunch, over 1,400 autonomous driving vehicles from 80+ companies have undergone testing across 36 US states as of 2019.
All that said, self-driving cars are undoubtedly the future of the transportation sector.
However, this major pivot would bring the following ten unforeseen changes (both good and bad) in the next decade.
1. Unemployment
Unemployment is the most anticipated adverse effect of the future shift to autonomous driving vehicles.
For instance, millions of Americans work in the transportation industries as drivers, supervisory, and support staff, among others. Therefore, they will lose their jobs once these vehicles gain the capability to drive themselves without human intervention.
Investopedia cited US Bureau of Labor data to estimate that 4.5 million drivers could lose their jobs due to autonomous driving innovations.
2. Decreased private ownership of cars
People may opt to just get ride-hailing services from companies like Uber, Waymo, and Cruise when autonomous cars become more widespread.
According to Nissan‘s 2019 report, 49% of companies who own fleets of 31-100 vehicles foresee driverless deliveries in the future.
3. Auto Insurance prices
Auto insurance prices will substantially decline as the shift to autonomous driving cars eliminates the risks of human drivers.
Given that self-driving cars can operate without humans behind the wheel, the number of drivers taking auto insurance would also drop. It can potentially hurt the automobile insurance industry.
However, there may also be new auto insurance forms that cover risks linked to self-driving cars to cope with the transition.
4. Reduced Air Pollution
One of the good effects of the imminent shift to autonomous driving vehicles is the reduction of air pollution.
Most of these cars utilize electric power rather than polluting gas. Therefore, the widespread availability of self-driving electric vehicles would undoubtedly have a positive impact on the environment.
The anticipated decline in private car ownership also means there would be fewer cars driving on the road.
5. Hacked Vehicles
Autonomous driving cars heavily rely on computer hardware and software, which are vulnerable to cyber attacks from malicious hackers.
Hackers can exploit a car’s systems and control it. Hacking these systems would further become easier with the potential adoption of a single network to improve communication across the vehicles. If this network gets compromised, the hacker could easily stop all the cars from operating.
6. Fewer parking spaces
The expansion of the self-driving car industry can reduce the need for more parking lots.
These cars can drive nonstop between destinations after dropping the passengers, unlike human-driven cars that need some time to park from time to time.
7. More accessibility
The shift to autonomous driving cars eliminates the need for people to learn driving skills, making it more accessible to a wide range of people.
In addition, vulnerable people, such as the elderly and those with disabilities, could then own self-driving vehicles to service them whenever they need them.
8. Drop in drunk driving cases
The widespread use of autonomous driving cars is expected to decrease the cases of drunk driving worldwide as drivers would no longer have the urge to drive a car when they are drunk or even impaired by illegal drugs.
However, it can encourage them to continuously consume such products without worrying about their safety while on the road.
9. Better pedestrian safety
Autonomous driving cars can potentially improve the safety of pedestrians. The technology can employ GPS to follow predefined paths, making it safer for people walking on public roads. In addition, it may also result in the development of more pedestrian-only locations.
10. New car designs
The looming dominance of autonomous driving cars in the transportation sector could initiate the development of new car designs.
Future cars may no longer feature a driver and passenger seat, considering the elimination of a driver behind the steering wheels.
A possible design would be a row of seats facing backward to enable all passengers in the car to communicate with each other. It may also adopt seating designs from buses or subways to improve comfort and maximize space.
While the future of driverless cars is exciting, there are still challenges to address before they dominate the roads. In addition, governments and companies must work closely together to encourage people to embrace the changes to truly progress.
