Russell's Teapot issue 4

Photograph of a Tesla by Anna Clery
A few roadblocks remain in terms of infrastructure
and a lot of anxiety remains when
people think that ‘robots’ are taking over. Nitin
Gadkari, who was the India’s Union Minister
for Road Transport Highways and Shipping in
2019, was clear in the media when he declared
that he “will not allow driverless cars in India
[and he is] not going to promote any technology
or policy that will render people jobless”.
It is true that millions of driving jobs could
disappear as cars and trucks become more autonomous.
Automation is always great until it
known to cost jobs, and driverless cars are no
exception.
The ethical issue surrounding driverless cars
being able to make life or death decisions on
our roads is still very emotive, and people are
reluctant to give them free rein. They were
proven right when, in March 2018, a driverless
Uber car fatally hit a pedestrian and currently
research is being undertaken to better protect
pedestrians from driverless cars. Another safety
issue is that automated cars have a problem
‘seeing’ obstacles in certain weather conditions,
like snow or rain.
The technology is undoubtedly evolving rapidly,
and technical developments are working
hard at keeping up with the most futuristic
ideas: Tesla announced this year that they were
considering launching, as soon as 2023, an
automated car without a steering wheel. The
near future will look quite different, and we
might to adjust to rapidly changing habits. So,
the question remains: not if, but when, will a
driverless car be in your garage? When this
becomes a reality, I will miss films like “Fast
and Furious”.
By Emily Hayden