The nature of car travel is about to change more profoundly than when the mass-produced Model T was introduced to the roads of America. For one thing, people will no longer drive cars, leaving that task to the onboard navigation system. Also, the switch from the internal combustion engine to electric powered cars is going to drive changes in interior design that are going to alter the experience of being in a Motor Vehicle, according to Wired.
Self-driving cars take over the drudgery of road travel
The cars of the future will lack steering wheels, brakes, and accelerator pedals.
Since people will no longer have to drive the driver’s seat wouldn’t be necessary. The only controls you would have to use would be to operate the radio, the onboard TV monitor, and a few other features, which you’ll likely use your smartphone for.
Private ownership of motor vehicles may become the exclusive province of the wealthy and eccentric. You’ll be able to call your ride, much as people do Uber and Lyft, as needed, eliminating the need to pay for maintenance, fuel, and insurance. You might pay for each ride or pay for the service with a monthly subscription within a single geographic area like a city and environs.
How electric cars will change the riding experience
Automobiles that run on electricity will lack the bulky internal combustion engine and transmission train.
This innovation will allow for roomier interiors, making cars into lounges on wheels. Seats might be arranged around a table where passengers can interact with one another, free from the necessity of paying attention to the road. People can have business meetings while on the road or even have lunch or dinner. They can watch television on their tablets or work on the Internet, since needless to say the cars of the future will have wifi.
If nothing else, passengers can take a nap in roomy comfort.
When will all of these excellent things happen?
Car and ride sharing companies are diligently working on the self-Driving technologies that will make this future possible. The one hold up may be government regulators, who have to assure themselves that the system described above will be safer and not less.
But, by most estimates, by 2030 people will be tooling about in self-driving, electric cars that they don’t own. Not only will your next car may be the last you will ever buy, but children being born today will only know about the act of driving from old movies and television shows.
