When is the last time you stepped into a car? And when is the last time you had a driver behind the wheel? Chances are your answers will vary greatly in the not too distant future. Self-driving cars already have prototypes which are being used by consumers and are continuing to improve with every update. The significance of this innovation and the impacts it will have cannot be understated.
There are countless benefits to self-driving cars which are clear as day. Being able to relax behind the wheel or even fall asleep whilst being driven to your location is only a minor benefit. Having highly advanced self-driving cars will result in far less car related accidents and deaths (which currently stands at 40,100 in the U.S. alone), traffic jams will eventually completely disappear, estimated 160 billion dollars in gas will be saved each year in the U.S. due to these efficiency improvements, and far less space on roads will be required due to human error not being something that must be accounted for anymore.
However, despite these appealing benefits, naturally there will be drawbacks we must face. One of the biggest drawbacks are the loss of jobs. If we look at the taxi industry, there are currently 305,100 jobs in the U.S. alone, which will all likely be replaced in the future. More significantly, trucking jobs, which account for 3.5 million jobs will also be replaced eventually as self-driving trucks will inevitably become a thing (Volvo is already releasing concepts for such a feat). These significant loss in jobs will cause huge social problems and must be carefully evaluated by governments to prevent massive unemployment.
As a result, we are faced with incredible benefits, but dangerous drawbacks. However, seeing as this is almost an inevitable change waiting to happen, we must focus on how to prevent the drawbacks from getting out of hand and making sure the benefits foster into the great positive benefits they can become. One solution to this could be to create more jobs in related sectors, such as the continuous design of self-driving cars, maintenance, etc. Alternatively, education can be promoted even further by subsidizing fees, in order to ensure that the people who lose their jobs will be able to go back into school and learn new skills and talents, on top of more young adults following through with an education as well.
Author: 430863js
References
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Bergener, J. (2018). Top 5 Disadvantages of Driverless Cars | Bergener Mirejovsky. Retrieved from https://www.bergenerlaw.com/top-5-disadvantages-of-driverless-cars/
LeBeau, P. (2018). Traffic deaths edge lower, but 2017 stats paint worrisome picture. Retrieved from https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/14/traffic-deaths-edge-lower-but-2017-stats-paint-worrisome-picture.html
Taxi Drivers, Ride-Hailing Drivers, and Chauffeurs : Occupational Outlook Handbook: : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/transportation-and-material-moving/taxi-drivers-and-chauffeurs.htm
