The dawn of the driverless car era could be about to revolutionise the way grey nomads travel. The US state of Nevada has just put science in the driver’s seat by approving America’s first self-driven vehicle licence. The first to hit the highway will be a modified Toyota Prius which uses video cameras on the roof, radar sensors and a range finder laser to detect other cars and obstacles.
The car faced rigorous testing and apparently covered 220,000 miles with no accidents … other than being hit by from behind at traffic lights.
Bruce Breslow, director of Nevada’s Department of Motor Vehicles, says he believes driverless vehicles are the “cars of the future”. He says the long-term plan is to license members of the public to ‘drive’ such cars. Other states, including California, are now planning similar changes.
Experts say the vast majority of vehicle accidents are due to human error, and that autonomous vehicles are capable of analysing the driving environment more quickly than people and of operating the vehicle more safely.
The implications for future grey nomads are endless. Perhaps there will be a reduced chance of hitting a stray camel, or perhaps, a ‘boring’ Outback drive will now be a good opportunity for everyone to take a nap. At the very least, all vehicle occupants will be free to take in the scenery without having to ‘watch the road’.
And, perhaps, most excitingly of all, losing a driving licence due to a medical condition may no longer be deterrent to setting off on the Big Lap.
