Traveling by car, bus, or train is often seen as a necessary evil. We endure long commutes and tedious delays because it’s the most practical way to get from point A to point B. But what if there was a better way? What if we could automate the process of transportation so that it was more efficient and less of a hassle?
The transportation artificial intelligence market was valued at USD 1.00 billion in 2016 and is expected to increase at a CAGR of 17.87% during the forecast period.
The rise of automated transportation options such as self-driving cars and trucks, public transit, and mass transit systems can significantly reduce the number of vehicles on the road. This translates to increased safety, faster travel times, and more efficient traffic flow.
With the advent of autonomous cars, people will no longer need to manually drive in order to get from point A to point B. Whether it’s a personal trip, or a commute for work, self-driving vehicles offer riders many advantages as far as efficiency and quality of ride is concerned.
Imagine being able to relax on your daily commute or work trip rather than worrying about getting stuck in dangerous traffic or being pulled over by the cops for speeding. Self-driving cars are programmed with optimal routes for a safe and efficient ride, so there will be no unnecessary stops along the way.
Benefits Of Automation In Transportation
As automation technologies continue to evolve, transportation organizations are looking to implement intelligent automation capabilities to improve efficiency and optimize operations. This entails shipping and transportation providers leveraging advanced technologies, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, to automate various processes.
By doing so, these organizations can improve shipment tracking, route planning, and other aspects of their business. Ultimately, the goal is to provide a better experience for customers and reduce costs associated with transportation.
There is a growing trend of warehouse automation and logistics providers using automated systems to improve efficiency and transportation organizations are taking notice. These systems can provide many benefits such as reducing labor costs, increasing accuracy, and improving safety.
1. Safety
With autonomous cars, you’ll be able to sleep in your car or relax on your commute without fear of getting into a car accident. In the event of an accident, most autonomous vehicles will be able to know what is going on around it in order to make a safe decision and avoid potential hazards.
Vehicle automation, enabled by installed advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS), assists drivers in avoiding collisions. A vehicle with Level 0/1 automation has a 29 percent lower collision rate than a vehicle with no automation. Level 4/5 autonomous vehicles are expected to be 76 percent less likely to be involved in a traffic collision than non-automated vehicles once they are operational, which is expected to be around 2030.
2. Time Savings
Instead of wasting time sitting in traffic every day, drivers will be able to spend their time doing other activities while safely cruising along their routes autonomously. With fewer cars on the road, flow through traffic will be more efficient as there will be fewer drivers having to maneuver around cars that are slowing down or being blocked by breakdowns or accidents.
3. Clothing And Electronics
Automated vehicles will also free up transportation space to store more cargo in the back seat of your car. This means you’ll no longer be stuck with a small backpack to lug around or sitting with your knees pressed against a large desk while working on a laptop. With fewer people clinging to their seats, there will be more room for cargo so that you’ll be able to keep your electronics handy and within reach at all times.
4. Increased Safety For Drivers/Passengers
With autonomous vehicles, accidents are less likely to happen as they are programmed to recognize signals and respond accordingly rather than acting on their own accord. Drivers would no longer be experiencing any stress or fear in the event of an accident as the car would make all decisions for them.
5. Increased Work Efficiency And Productivity
78% of study respondents utilise AI to increase the value of rules-based automation (or are planning to do so in the future).
Since automated vehicles can be programmed to navigate through traffic, they will allow members of the workforce to have more time to get their work done rather than frittering away valuable time in traffic. There will be less waiting for long periods of time as a result of fewer vehicles on the road and thus, less human error occurs.
6. Improved Safety For Riders
Once autonomous cars become widely used, traveling will no longer require a passenger’s constant attention as the car makes all decisions for them. Drivers will be able to focus on other tasks while the vehicle takes care of all of the driving and navigation for them.
This will not only increase rider safety, but also allow them to enjoy more relaxed travels as they’ll no longer have to worry about getting into a crash with another vehicle or driver.
7. Reduced Stress Levels
Fewer cars on the road means less traffic which can make travel times more efficient. Plus, there will be fewer vehicles in which drivers are stuck behind, so stress levels should decrease as well.
With automated cars, drivers will no longer be stuck behind breakdowns or accidents that could potentially have been avoided if they were not operating on a road alongside one or more other cars.
8. Increased Efficiency For Rivers and Transit Systems
Since automated vehicles can be programmed to navigate through traffic, they will allow members of the workforce to have more time to get their work done rather than frittering away valuable time in traffic.
This means that roads that are underutilized will be repurposed for other purposes such as transportation of goods and services, which can increase efficiency and productivity for the immediate area.
9. Less Energy Usage
With reduced traffic, fewer vehicles on the road means less pollution. Lessened transportation also allows air pollution to become a smaller problem as fewer cars are on the road burning fossil fuels unnecessarily.
Delivering goods and services to consumers or members of the workforce can also be an alternative use of transportation space. In addition, autonomous vehicles will allow supply chains to become more efficient as they are able to operate without human contact. Employees will no longer have to worry about arriving at their destination on time or wondering if they made it there at all.
Overall, this would allow factories to run more efficiently as they wouldn’t have to worry about breakdowns or accidents that could interrupt production processes. This would in turn increase job security as well as increase customer satisfaction overall.
Challenges Of Automation In Transportation
As intelligent automation capabilities and artificial intelligence become more prevalent, transportation providers seek to take advantage of these technologies in order to improve efficiency and reduce costs.
However, there are still many challenges to implementing these technologies on a large scale, particularly when it comes to replacing human drivers. Logistics companies are working to overcome these challenges and develop solutions that will enable them to reap the benefits of intelligent automation.
According to a Mckinsey report, vehicles move 65 percent of products internationally.
In recent years, the trucking companies have been struggling to keep up with the demands of the transportation industry. The problem has been exacerbated by the fact that the inventory management of these companies has not been able to keep up with the equipment resources that are required by the transportation sector.
This has led to a number of trucking companies going out of business, and the industry as a whole is struggling to find a way to cope with this problem.
1. Cost Of Implementation
Self-driving cars may have a hefty price tag on them when they are fully released to the public. There is a possibility that the implementation of automated vehicles will be more expensive than originally anticipated which could potentially delay their roll out to the marketplace. With these added costs, consumers may not be able to afford autonomous vehicles immediately and it might take some time for their use to become widespread.
2. Safety Concerns
Another potential challenge with self-driving cars is that they do not have a human supervisor or driver in place if something goes wrong while they are in transit between two destinations.
Studies have shown that in some instances, the automated vehicles are not able to detect a particular object or situation that is present on the road. This phenomenon is believed to be due to the limited amount of data needed for the car to react accordingly, which might prove problematic if a potential hazard or object was placed in the way of travel.
3. Loss Of Physical Connection
With autonomous vehicles, cars will no longer have wheels and thus, driver’s licenses will no longer be required. There is also concern that computer-driving systems will not need a steering wheel or brake pedals which would make it more difficult for drivers to regain control of their vehicle if something goes wrong during transit.
In addition, computers are not very good at making decisions that are based on human contact. If a person is driving, the computer will certainly not be able to take into consideration things like eye movement or facial expressions.
4. Increased Need For Education
With autonomous vehicles on the road in the future, drivers will no longer be required to have a license and thus, there will most likely be an increase in car accidents as a result of people trying to learn how to drive on their own. This is due to the fact that concerns about safety will become more of an issue with less experienced drivers behind the wheel than with fully-certified individuals who know what they are doing behind the wheel.
5. Increased Crime And Driver Distractions
With less traffic on the road and fewer vehicles on the road, there will be less people around for drivers to safely interact with. This can result in increased driver distraction as people may not be able to keep themselves focused on the road while also dealing with distractions such as passengers, passengers’ children, or other objects like street signs.
This can result in crashes or other motor vehicle related accidents that could have been avoided had there been more people in place to figure out what they were looking at while they were behind the wheel.
6. Decreased Driver Productivity
With fewer cars on the road as a result of automated vehicles, drivers will have more time to work and less time that they need to spend in traffic. This can be problematic as a driver who is able to operate their vehicle with little to no human supervision, can yield to the temptation of talking on their cell phone while driving, or may even attempt to text while they are driving by accident.
These types of activities could distract drivers from keeping an eye on their car’s surroundings which could result in crashes or other auto-related issues that are incredibly dangerous. This is another reason why automation in transportation is important.
7. Decreased Driver Safety
There is also concern that driver distraction may become more prevalent as drivers are able to use more of their time on the road because of automation. Another potential concern that could arise from driverless cars is that people will become increasingly dependent on a computer for guidance and constantly rely on it as a safety net or crutch, which can lead to problematic outcomes in the event that the computer malfunctions.
8. Decreased Logistics And Transportation Capacity
According to a study undertaken by experts at the University of California, Berkeley, the estimated cost of aircraft delays in the United States is 39 billion dollars.
Another challenge that could arise with the introduction of automated vehicles is an increase in supply chain logistics and transportation capacity. With a large number of automated vehicles on the road, there would need to be a rise in available digital space that could easily store the relevant information needed by these vehicles.
Without this digital storage space, drivers and passengers would not have access to the necessary digital information or communications needed to complete their destination.
9. Decreased Job Opportunities
With computers taking over the responsibilities of driving and the ability to find directions autonomously, this could result in fewer job opportunities for people with less than stellar educations or who speak multiple languages. In this case, the only area that may see a rise in employment opportunities with automation is the field of computer science and engineering.
Future Of Automation In Transportation
According to research, the global market for artificial intelligence in transportation is predicted to reach 3.5 billion dollars by 2023.
Autonomous vehicles are an exciting advancement in the transportation industry. While many people feel as though there are still major obstacles to self-driving cars and fear that they may not be safe enough to get them onto our roads, others believe that these vehicles will be highly beneficial to society and could help combat major issues such as crime, lack of transportation services for underprivileged areas of society, and increased carbon emissions due to increased traffic congestion.
There is no doubt that self-driving cars will play a huge role in public transportation in the future when they are able to reach their full potential. The primary challenge is ensuring that this technology can transition into the real world with little to no issues. While there are many concerns that have already arisen from autonomous vehicles, it is believed that these obstacles will be overcome as time goes on.
Autonomous vehicles are here to stay, and if the issues with them can be resolved, we may one day see a future in which all people have access to affordable transportation services, which will surely make the lives of many people much easier and safer than they would otherwise be.
Final Note
Paying attention to the way automated safety systems can protect us on the roads has been getting a lot more attention lately with each day that passes. With all of these new features and technologies, it is easy to lose sight of other aspects of this potential revolution in the driving rooms of our lives. Driverless cars are poised to change a variety of things in our communities – including how we work and how we spend our free time.
Last Updated on October 11, 2023 by Priyanshi Sharma