We’ve previously reported that the rise of the ATM didn’t decrease the number of bank tellers – it increased them. It’s possible that driverless cars will similarly mean an increase in the number of paid driver positions. Alex Davies wrote:

• For all the hoopla about self-driving cars, it’s unlikely they’ll be able to navigate through unusual circumstances – such as when construction requires driving on the wrong side of the road.
• Nissan believes the solution is to have “drivers” who can remotely transmit instructions to cars, when the car isn’t sure what to do.
• The driver won’t take over active control of the vehicle. Issues with latency could make this dangerous. Instead the human will evaluate the situation and transmit a sequence of maneuvers the car will execute.
• In this Nissan is drawing upon the same technology that NASA uses to send navigation instructions to Mars rovers.
• NASA likens it to lifts. You don’t need a lift operator, but you need a help button in the rare instances that something goes wrong.
• Such a system could smooth the adoption of self-driving cars, as consumers and regulators will take comfort in knowing there’s a human on hand if required.

The full article on Wired is a fascinating insight into one potential future of self-driving cars.

Via: Marginal Revolution