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Articles on Autonomous vehicles

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Cities have a choice of autonomous vehicle futures: cars or mass transit vehicles. Which one we adopt is likely to determine how people-friendly our cities are. SueBeDoo888/Shutterstock

Autonomous transport will shape our cities’ future – best get on the right path early

Autonomous mass transit vehicles like ‘trackless trams’ are a better bet than autonomous cars to give us people-friendly cities that capture the value created by infrastructure for the common good.
What would Artificial General Intelligence make of the human world? Shutterstock/Nathapol Kongseang

To protect us from the risks of advanced artificial intelligence, we need to act now

We’re on the road to developing artificial intelligence systems that will be able to do tasks beyond those they were designed for. But will we be able to control them?
CRRC’s version of the optically guided bus, now operating in Zhuzhou, is more like light rail than its predecessors. CRRC

Looking past the hype about ‘trackless trams’

The autonomous rail rapid transit (ART) system developed in China might make buses sexy, but the technology alone won’t resolve the issues of road space and right of way in Australia.
Charging six cars at once is fine. Charging 60 million might be a bit tougher. Nadya Kubik/Shutterstock.com

Switching to electric vehicles could save the US billions, but timing is everything

Ensuring that everyone doesn’t charge their cars simultaneously will make a big difference.
A self-driving car heads into the woods. Matthew Doude

Driving autonomous cars off the beaten path

One-third of roads in the U.S. are unpaved; plenty more have faded or obscured road markings. Today’s self-driving vehicles can’t go on them, and will need new algorithms to handle those conditions.
A cleaner future with autonomous vehicles is not a sure thing. AP Photo/Jae C. Hong

Spread of self-driving cars could cause more pollution – unless the electric grid transforms radically

The spread of ride-hailing services and autonomous vehicles will lead to higher energy demand, a study finds. Electric vehicles and a much cleaner grid are the only way to avoid more emissions.
CRRC Zhuzhou Institute developed the rubber-tyred autonomous rail transit (ART) system, or trackless tram, which has already been trialled in Zhuzhou, China. Wikimedia

Why trackless trams are ready to replace light rail

For 40 years the author has argued that trains and trams are better than buses. New ‘trackless trams’, which take innovations from high speed rail and put them in a bus, have changed his mind.
Driving conditions that don’t require frequent use of vehicle controls, but do require constant vigilance for hazards, can reduce driver alertness. Shutterstock

Automated vehicles may encourage a new breed of distracted drivers

Humans are poor at remaining vigilant over time. That’s bad news for the safety of partially automated cars, which sometimes need the person behind the wheel to quickly take over control.
Autonomous vehicles are coming to our cities – in fact, driverless buses are already on the road in Adelaide. David Mariuz/AAP

Why driverless vehicles should not be given unchecked access to our cities

To maximise the benefits and limit the costs, the use of autonomous vehicles should be pooled and their access to the city restricted.
Just like teenagers, robot drivers need lots of practice. iurii/Shutterstock.com

Even self-driving cars need driver education

Autonomous cars need to learn how to drive just like people do: with real-world practice on public roads. It’s key to safety, and to public confidence in the new technologies.

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