Posted on 05/31/2012 7:50:04 AM PDT by Feline_AIDS
Two days ago I asked you all to answer my ignorant questions about Amtrak, which I misspelled as Amtrack. (Thread: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2889095/posts)
First, thanks for the helpful responses. It was very informative.
Today I made the 5 hr trip by car that I loathe. This same trip that would have cost me ~$300 and 16+ hrs round trip on Amtrak, according to the estimates on their website.
By car, (assuming gas prices stay the same), it will be $100 and 10 hrs.
Obviously, the car wins.
But there's one thing missing from the comments on the other thread--something no one even considered as a factor in the Amtrak discussion--which is the relative relaxation provided by not having to pay attention to the road. (Flying is essentially the same, though flying makes me nervous, so the experience is still stressful.)
On the other thread, several of you mentioned a Top Gear episode that tested whether it was faster to drive or take public transportation like a train. The car won. On shorter trips, it also beat the plane, apparently, though I suppose that makes sense when you add in the mandatory 3-act security theatre production.
So I thought of the solution to the issue of hating the required attentiveness but liking the fuel and time efficiency of auto travel. Google's self-driving car.
Yes, Google is probably evil and yes, I know they probably know all my passwords and wifi data. But, they've pushed the idea of self-driving cars and a quick... Google search... shows me there's already competition. So they might not have a monopoly on it forever. See the article at the link.
Taking one would be
-less stressful than driving long distances and eventually maybe even allow you to sleep and let the car go,
-at least as fuel-efficient and therefore cheap as driving is now,
-faster than a train, and
-fewer strangers would feel your privates (assuming you didn't pick up Bill Clinton along the way)
Of course there are dangers and possibly some serious privacy issues, and the creepy possibility that someone could commandeer control of your car and send it wherever. It's also possible you'd tell it to take you from Orlando to Boca Raton, but it heard "Bahamas" and drives you into the ocean. But I like to look on the bright side of the future--maybe the self-driving cars will have plenty of headroom for my tinfoil hat! Or maybe they'll truly operate reliably by optics and not have to connect to the evil google headquarters at all. Apparently they also warn and return control to the driver when they're confused. And before they were available to consumers, they'd have to be tested fairly rigorously just to make consumers comfortable.
Just curious what you all think about self-driving cars. It would be decades before I'd feel safe on an interstate in one of them, but I like the idea.
^The "road train" of self-driven cars on a Spanish motorway.
I know by posting this I'm inviting all the cynics to tell me how stupid I am and how not wanting to do something so simple as driving a car is what is wrong with America.
Let me save you the trouble: I am stupid and lazy.
I would trust Toonces more than a self-driven car.
It might be a wonderful idea, but the lawyers will have a field day with it.
“Were you injured or killed in an accident with a self-driving car? We’ll help you sue Volvo and claim the damages you deserve!”
Of course, the liberal plan is to do away with private automobiles.
Why are you making the trip? Perhaps you could put a robot in the car and have it do the task for you when the car gets it there?
Why are you making the trip? Perhaps you could put a robot in the car and have it do the task for you when the car gets it there?
I want Train Ferries - where I can drive my car onto a train car with a bunch of other cars, the train takes me to a town a few hundred miles away, then I drive off.
The reason transportation sucks is because we all live in poverty. Face it.
Since I saw “The Sontaran Stratagem” episode of Doctor Who, I’d be really leary of giving anything else control of my car! :-)
Already can do - Virginia to Florida.
Auto Train Lorton, VA (Washington, DC) - Sanford, FL (Orlando)
Google is beta testing this idea in cooperation with the state of Nevada. It also has a more limited test of several self-driving cars on the road in California. These tests are an accumulation of real-world road experience that will be critical if this technology is going to get established.
If it does catch on, the expense of development and testing, though considerable, is minuscule compared to the advantage of being able to use existing infrastructure.
A cross-country Auto-Train would be nice, but there is no equipment for such a service and the railroads, being privately owned, would have to agree to it. And cost, as always, would be the determining factor.
This gets built into the liability laws ala no fault insurance.
that was already done here in the states years ago.
A self drive car is a great idea but I don’t think I could relax while being in one.
Give it a ten year trial and then compare to current fatalities and if it wins, I may try it.
Thanks, guys. One would think that there could be other routes just as successful along the West coast or cross-continent.
yeah...it has a long way to go imo. I’d like to see this work during a Michigan winter; construction barrels and temporary lanes (& lines), large pot holes, icy roads/black ice, etc.
And do I think it can anticipate a deer running into the road (like I can if I see it)? No.
Until a vehicle can see in colorful 3D, identify all objects, anticipate motion paths, handle road “events” - etc...and do this many times a second, this stuff is fun but not yet practical. And yes, the *potential* for lawsuits will hamper this for years.
I’ve got a trip from Tampa to Northern VA coming up that I’m driving. Using the highest (business) IRS mileage rate of $0.55/mi to estimate cost of gas and wear and tear I’m looking at $990 round trip for a 15.5 hour (each way) drive.
Let’s check out the train:
17.5 hours, plus boarding and unloading time (not including three hours getting to and from stations). $428 round trip if you sit in a coach seat, cheapest private room is an additional $663. “Starting at” (their website isn’t working to get any further to see how much it would really be) $400 round trip for hauling the truck. Leaves at 3pm each way. No dogs allowed.
I guess if I REALLY hated driving enough to make the trip several hours longer each way, wasn’t taking the dogs, and was pretty flexible in my schedule it MIGHT make sense (assuming I really needed MY truck when I got to VA, otherwise flying and renting would be the obvious option). And this route, the only one in the area, is not that far off my intended route. I suspect this route is NOT successful at all and is highly subsidized.
Which is kind of too bad, because it sure seems like a cool idea (though not nearly as cool as the Key West Express).
Actually it’s one of the most profitable lines Amtrak has. I work in transportation and I know a few people who have worked it before. It’s basically mostly old snowbirds who have the money to pay for the best amenities. Hell it’s the only train left with a smoking car and it’s own crew base.
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