I can't wait for self driving tech to be put into use - transportation will get cheaper and faster (no more 8-10 hours driving limit bs), not to mention that one or two persons could drive a dozen trucks filled with cargo (though a lot of truckers will hate that)...
> transportation will get cheaper and faster (no more 8-10 hours driving limit bs)
Why do you say that? Somebody is still going to need to be awake at the controls, at least for the first few decades of self driving tech. There's a reason pilots on planes don't go to sleep when the auto-pilot kicks on.
It's not a good comparison: flying vs driving have totally different response times(minutes vs seconds). One could even say people can't respond in a good way in seconds , unless they keep full attention at all times, which beats the purpose of self driving cars.
We've basically proven that short of a software glitch, the car will always react faster and more appropriately than a human since a computer can process more information quicker than a human.
The driver won't have to be vigilant or even awake for the whole time, only in emergencies. I'm assuming the car would stop or slow down automatically in case of any problem and notify the driver.
I don't think that will be a hard requirement. A self-driving system will have to be capable of bringing a truck, or a convoy of trucks, to a safe stop in case of an incapacitated "driver" ("operator?"). Bringing an airplane promptly to a safe stop is usually not possible.
> not to mention that one or two persons could drive a dozen trucks filled with cargo
Maybe autonomous vehicles will make smaller trucks cost-effective, and big trucks will then be charged their true cost in road damage and traffic risks.
That would be a much more visible change in the traffic landscape.
