I say no... even thought it can be done technologically, I still think that it would be too much of a liability towards a company for releasing it into the market (since the onus isn't on the driver anymore, only on the car as it's only the car that's in control). Better accident prevention technology would be good though.

 

I love driving but i can see it happening, we all get connected to skynet... then it becomes self aware...

 

This brings up another question: How would auto insurance work? You would no longer have to insure a driver (unless there's part time manual drive).

Who would become responible for technical problems that might cause an accident?

Would the automakers have to pay out for every glitch?

 

You guys are talking about accidents and liability! I don't think there would be many accidents with an automated system. It may wipe them out almost completely.

 

Two good, if somewhat conflicting points. It's true that the single largest impediment to automated highways is the liability issue, automation will pose some problems of its own. Most automated systems tend to work rather well - except when they fail, and then they do so spectacularly! Automation doesn't produce little errors - your computer doesn't often add 2+2 and get 5. More likely - especially if it's like an old Windows PC, rather than giving you 5 - a correctable if obscure error in a long chain of computation - it will simply throw up the dreaded BSOD and exit the realm of productivity altogether.

Hope they don't put Mr. Gates in charge of developing the OS for our highways . . .

"Yeah Marty, we've got a 4500-car pileup out on I-40 - somebody tried to highlight, click, and move instead of cut and paste again. We need ambulances, wreckers, and a couple dozen IT guys . . . and who the heck is Dr. Watson?"

 

No but with LKA, it will keep you in the lane on the highway.. although that probably means you'll be swaying from left to right enough to catch a cop's attention .



Automated can be done on the highway and the reaction time? Don't forget if the highway is "smart" enough to support automated driving, it can relay information to the car so the car knows to brake before it actually has to brake. i.e. there's a jam ahead. The highway relays the information to all the cars behind the jam warning them of stopped traffic. The computers can then take appropriate action instead of slamming on the brakes like we would cause we have no idea what's up ahead until we see the jam.