Despite being a life-long lover of cars, and a reformed petrolhead, I've been looking forward to autonomous driving for some time. I hate driving in traffic, even though that's far easier, and less polluting in an EV. Traffic sucks. Pollution sucks more. Autonomous driving can tackle both of these issues. Of course future mobility is complex, and I certainly don't see a world the same as now, just with electric power-trains and robot drivers. We need to reduce cars, increase walking, cycling, clean and reliable public transit. Mobility as a service (MaaS) is the future. Autonomous driving will play a huge part in the future of mobility, but we have huge sociological as much as technical hurdles to overcome. Here we have an example of where the first autonomous steps will occur, the start of the journey so to speak. On campuses, closed routes, airports, universities, large industrial complexes. Reduced noise and pollution are huge advantages, and controlled environments let us humans get used to the idea that robots may not just be better drivers, but they can make our lives better too.
At Hyperion we continue to work for and with global leaders in the world of future/smart mobility. Talent doesn't grow on trees, but we know where to find, attract and retain it for our clients.
“It will give us a real-life research platform that allows to really look at the future,” said Johney Green, associate lab director for mechanical and thermal engineering sciences. “It will not only carry us around but it will give our transportation research team an opportunity to better understand autonomous vehicles.”
https://www.denverpost.com/2019/09/10/nrel-launches-new-self-driving-shuttle/
