General Road and Highway Discussion

[nms]

I expect that we'll see a significant increase in development and uptake in driver-assist devices and full on automation as the baby boomers run the risk of not being able to drive anymore in 10-15 years. It will probably be more cost effective for seniors to continue to own their own car and be able to remain in their current living conditions (be it a house, apartment, condo, or retirement community) than for most of them to ultimately lose their licenses and end up needing other services or suffer isolation. For instance, I'm not sure that services like MobilityPlus would be able to offer an adequate public transit option for seniors unable to walk to their nearest transit stop, or from the transit stop that is closest to their destination. Might a group of neighbours go splits on a self-driving car?

As an example, I currently have a friend who lives alone in Waterloo but her family lives in three different locations more than 90 minutes away in three different directions that are not currently served by other transportation modes (and aren't likely to be any time soon). She remains in Waterloo because her friends and community is here. If she had the option of a self-driving car, she could maintain a degree of independence and the ability to visit family without having to rely on friends or family to make the three-hour round trip to pick her up for a family gathering.

Since it was the baby boomer generation that brought us the need for a minivan, why not the self-driving car too?