Google powered cars... gawd help us...

I remember seeing these type of cars being tested a long time ago.

Infact there is a group that races automated vehicles Darpa's Robot Car Race: Gentlemen, Start Your Processors

I think what gogole will bring to the table is back-end computing that can handle millions of journeys at the same time, optimise for traffic flow and ultimately reduce journey time.

A BIG effect will be on motorways, as continual stopping and starting during congestion massively slows down traffic. But with a computer taking the reigns it could move traffic forwards together as one.

And yes its a little bit terrifying!

Hopefully not too long until we have Mag-lev super highways a la minority report.

I heard they've been driving them around for a good 7 months now..
surely can't be that apocolyptic.. no one has even had their toes run over yet

Cars that drive themselves = yes please... maybe then I can finally get a driving liscense (You just have to be able to wear a seatbelt x])

The article link I posted was dated 10.25.07

So they're been around for at least 3 years now.

Yeah sounds about right, not too surprised

How angry would you be getting cut-up by one during a drive around america? :P

I'm split on it. I want it to exist. I can't hold a driver's licence and I love the idea that in twenty or thirty years time I might be able to enjoy the convenience and independence of having a car of my own *anyway*. I also think that if asked to place a bet on what happens first - Google release a self-driving car commercially, or the entire public transport network becomes both affordable and accessible - I would be backing Google all the way.

But I think persuading "the public" to allow robots to drive cars without a fully capable and highly trained human backup driver poised and ready to take the controls at half a moments' notice is going to take quite some doing.

While there is a human driver in the front paying attention to the road, to all practical purposes, they've invented the taxi.

A very good point indeed Mary, what happens if Google has a sligh lapse in operation, to put it nicely... all the cars come to a halt and everyone is late for work? I don't think it's something that would catch and go world wide but likewise, I would like it to.

Edit: 100th Post ;D

*Sings* ~ ;3;3

Would they be aiming to replace all cars, though? Sounds like their test one was in an environment mixing with more traditional, human-controlled cars (and pedestrians, and bikes, and possibly cats).

Assume one day, maybe the second Tuesday of the month , there is a big glitch and none of the cars will go. How will that be any different to a Tube strike, or to the hundreds of people who get up every morning and discover that their traditional car has a fault? People will phone in, try and arrange to work from home or to use flexitime to get it fixed... those who can't will get a taxi which is affordable as a one-off.

The few people who were out in their cars when the glitch hit will be collected up by the AA/RAC or, in the less lucky cases, by ambulances. Terrible... but again, no different to normal road accidents where the wheel stops responding or the brakes don't work.

My big fear would be the one I think I recall mentioned on Top Gear when they discussed self-driving cars - the hazard of the boy racer who decides he's going to tinker with it.

You're absolutely right, people come to a resolve when things go wrong, what I don't like is the way we're getting, cars that drive themselves, other lazy technology, we're not moving forward as a race, just improving the technology to make life easier.
Makes no sense reading it back but I'm sure you'll understand, I got a D in English don't hold it against me lol

I would say, these boy-racers you refer too would actually need to be highly technically minded to 'tinker' with such technology, maybe even go onto higher learning to do it! that wouldn't be such a bad thing for society

Thats why god invented the socket set, to let us boys tinker

Remember in the old days when google was just a funky search engine

Telling you... skynet, don't say I didn't warn you...