Self Driving Cars, Neighborhood Electrics, and the Future of Auto-mobility

September 18, 2012 10:00 am to 1:00 pm

In 2007, four out of eleven cars finished a 61 mile urban simulation course for the DARPA Urban Challenge obeying all traffic signals and lane markings without human intervention. In 2010, Google researchers announced that they had logged over 1,000 miles with no human intervention, and 140,000 miles with minimal intervention in a specially equipped Prius. Currently car manufacturers such as Lexus, Mercedes Benz, and Volvo are introducing self-driving features such as self-parking, radar enabled adaptive cruise control, and automatic collision avoidance. Industry experts predict fully autonomous vehicles may be commercially available as soon as five years from now.

Last year the state of Nevada legislature created licensing requirements for self-driving vehicles. Are our planning and regulatory frameworks ready? How will these trends effect vehicle miles traveled, congestion, and vehicle ownership? Today’s Toolbox Tuesday will feature two program managers from the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles to discuss the process they went through to create standards for self-driving vehicles. They will be joined by transportation planners, auto industry, and insurance experts to discuss the implications of self-driving cars as well as neighborhood-range electrics on the transportation network.
 
CIS Resident Fellow Bryant Walker Smith will be one of the speakers at this event. 
 
For more information about the event and to register for the event go to Toolbox Tuesdays
Location: 
SCAG Main Office
818 W 7th Street
Los Angeles, CA

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