Automated driverless cars could be on the roads of New South Wales within the next five years, predicted Transport Minister Andrew Constance at a summit on the future of transport in Sydney on Monday. “We will have automated cars on our streets, in our suburbs,” he told reporters.
To support the deployment of automated cars, the state of NNO announced the creation of an Innovation Center in Western Sydney. The facility will host research on the impacts of emerging transportation and technology on the road.
The government has a big task ahead of it, says Constance: «If we examine the ways in which we should change our planning for transportation, our road networks, the way insurance is going to change, all this is going to happen incredibly quickly and I want us to be ahead and at the center», she said. «Everyone's movements are going to change: the driving age, speed limits, the way traffic lights are configured … We want to ensure that legislative and regulatory requirements have changed.»
Mass transit will also undergo significant changes, as automation technology improves. «Just like automated cars, there will also be driverless buses», he said, noting that they are already working on this in relation to the upcoming automated Sydney metro system.
Suggested that the adoption of automated transportation should initially be driven by improving road safety and reducing the insurance costs you offer. The change should be guided by small steps at the beginning, including automated braking points and lanes, where drivers can already experience it in cars from companies such as Tesla Motors.
According to Schwartz, in the future, instead of having a car in the garage, we will simply rent a car-driving program only for as long as needed.
«But what about all those transportation workers who could be put out of work by automation? Constance did not say whether the government is considering linking compensation systems for public transport workers who lose their jobs, similar to the «industry adjustment»» package that the taxi sector receives, when the government legalized sharing at the end of 2015. «Future jobs will be very different, our education system must change accordingly and ultimately the government must help people acquire new skills»», said.
