Sunday, June 19, 2016

2040s

Those self-driving cars will be here any minute.
The car has gotten mixed reviews. It has some truly intuitive and innovative features, like the display screen and an artificial intelligence named "Eleanor" that can act as a personal assistant.

But it also looks like that. One reviewer called the car "butt-ugly." Another called it "sublimely crazy."

Rolls-Royce's auto division, owned by BMW, has always been out there, trying to push the envelope on luxury and style. Certainly the 103EX does both. It clearly courts buyers who want to be noticed.

Will people buy it? We'll have to wait a long time to see. The company says the model could hit the road in the 2040s.

Happy to be wrong, but I expect my flying car will be self-driving, too.

My rightness or wrongness does not matter, what matters is how much we orient our public policy to vaporware? Already they're being used as excuses to not spend money on mass transit. Of course, even if they work you still have the peak car (commuting congestion) problem. Sure boosters claim they'll effectively increase highway capacity.

I'll be on the bus.