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from the control-your-own-vroom-vroom dept.
Visions of cars that drive themselves without emitting a bit of pollution while entertaining passengers with online movies and social media are what's taking center stage at the Tokyo Motor Show.
Japan, home to the world's top-selling automaker, has a younger generation disinterested in owning or driving cars. The show is about wooing them back. It's also about pushing an ambitious government-backed plan that paints Japan as a leader in automated driving technology.
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some automakers at the show are packing the technology into what looks more like a golf cart or scooter than a car, such as Honda Motor Co.'s cubicle-like Wander Stand and Wander Walker scooter.Instead of trying to venture on freeways and other public roads, these are designed for controlled environments, restricted to shuttling people to pre-determined destinations.
A prescient Soylentil observed here last year that one day soon driving your own car will be illegal. That might bear out.
(Score: 1) by Ethanol-fueled on Thursday October 29 2015, @02:33AM
In a magical near-future something like that would be an awesome idea - that is, cars on rails -- combining the intimacy of smaller vehicles with the safety and improved traffic management of rails. Under such a system, citizens wouldn't likely own the vehicles they ride but could hop on one with no delay, with the option to pay extra for larger cars in case family or even a large party are in town.
The major downfall to that would be that there may be severe privacy implications of having to ID yourself when you get on and confirm your stop with the computer.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday October 29 2015, @04:46AM
Sounds familiar. Where did you get that idea?