“Such a system will also keep a record of everywhere your vehicle has traveled, and the identities of the drivers and passengers who travel in it. At the current pace of systems integration, it will also record hundreds of other parameters “
How is this different than what you are typing now? It is recorded by a database somewhere so that they know every page you visit and every comment you make.
This doesn’t bother me too much because it is a private company that has the data and I use filters to keep most data private.
Same would be true should you buy a driverless car.
You get in, set it for the destination and it takes you there. You choose when and where to go. Your privacy data can be erased or filtered by choice.
Sort of like using a GPS. The supplier of the GPS stream could know where you are, but this doesn’t bother most people who use this useful technology.
Driverless cars does fit with the philosophy of FreeRepublic since it is an alternative to the mass transit “high speed” trains that liberal push.
A system of robotic cars preserve individual ownerships and free travel that automobiles provide. It is a supped up version of cars now able to park themselves or use curse control now.
The idea of robotic cars is a fine example of American ingenuity solving the serious problems of traffic fatalities and the colossal waste of time and energy caused by traffic jams.
We can accomplish the same thing by simply leaving our system of free individual transport the way it is.
You don't seem to get it. The system you're promoting is exactly the sort of thing that tyrants, totalitarians, leftists, and big government bureaucrats love. It's tailor made to take autonomy away from the individual, and transfer complete control of movement to the state.
No matter what you might think of the technological benefits, such a system will be abused by the government, and will result in the unintended consequence of reduced freedom for the citizens.