Author: Chase Holik
If you’re tired of being stuck behind the wheel when you are in bumper-to-bumper traffic, you may not have to in the future. Google has made a car that drives itself. You read that right, a self-driving car that will get you from point A to point B without you having to do anything. But before you get excited, let’s tap the brakes a little bit. This car is still mostly in the testing phase and it can only travel at a speed up to about 25mph right now.
The early statistics on the self-driving car are favorable. One in twelve of these cars have been involved in accidents in the last ten months or so, and none of those was serious. Of course, it’s hard to be in a serious accident when you’re only going 25mph, but the fact that the rates are that low without having a human element involved is pretty remarkable.
Just imagine the possibilities if you had one of these self-driving cars. How much more productive could you be on your commute home? You could do business on your phone or laptop while your car gets you where you need to be. If you’re a female, you could do your makeup or nails or anything else that you may not have time to do in the morning.
Better yet, if you’ve had a rough night out, there’s no need to find a designated driver anymore! That may be a little bit of an exaggeration, considering it would be highly advisable for a competent driver to be available just in case something would go wrong with the car. But once all of the bugs are worked out in this smooth new automobile, you could be riding around in style with no hands.
Read: 12 Interesting Facts About Google
One thing you’ll have to get used to is the look of the car. It is a tiny piece of machinery that almost looks like a toy. It could be considered a cute little car to some people, but others may see it more as a dangerous thing to be riding in. Despite the outer appearance, these Google self-driving cars could be putting a new meaning to the term “luxury car.”
Unfortunately, these little vehicles are limited to the state of California right now as Google continues its testing. If you are fortunate enough to see one of these vehicles on the road, I’m sure Google would appreciate your feedback with how well the car performed. The more data and feedback that they get, the more likely that these cars will become more widely available in the near future. Once these cars are able to move at a speed closer to the speed limit, you could be cruising around the streets in your city in style. With many cities going “hands-free” with regards to cell phone usage, the new Google self-driving cars could re-define the meaning of hands-free in the near future.
