Column: The technology of the future is moving closer

I must, in fact, admit that the future is closer than what I originally thought. Already from 1st of April, it has been possible to encounter self-driving passenger cars driving freely around on the roads in California, where several car manufacturers, including Chevrolet, Honda and Toyota, have had a model approved. It is a major breakthrough.

As self-driving trucks may be an overwhelming sight to many citizens, transport companies have, in consultation with the public authorities, decided first to let passenger cars run for a trial period before trucks benefit from the technology. This gives citizens the opportunity to get used to the idea of self-driving vehicles.

However, self-driving trucks do not necessarily mean that they are driverless. Instead, the technology must be seen as a relief of the drivers on long journeys. Self-driving trucks will only drive on the motorway network, and as soon as they leave the exit, the driver must take over. It is therefore appropriate to make a comparison with pilots, who are responsible for take-off and landing of the aeroplane; everything in between is controlled by the autopilot.

The reason why California is so far ahead in this field is undoubtedly that many resources are being invested in this work. For example, the traffic police has established a department of 100 employees who continuously monitor the tests of the self-driving passenger cars. The results show that not a single accident caused by these cars has been registered after a year. The only accidents in which they have been involved are where they have braked for amber and have subsequently been struck from behind by conventional driver-driven cars that do not observe the traffic regulations and try to sneak across at amber.

It shows very clearly that the technology is there. It is now simply a question of establishing joint standards and national legislation to allow self-driving cars throughout the United States. Similar efforts are being made for the EU to establish corresponding standards covering the EU. The USA and Europe are closely connected, so the US trends can quickly gather pace in Europe as well.

In addition to the work with self-driving cars, California also has a declared objective of becoming independent of fossil fuels and being pollution free. Companies are therefore focusing closely on electrically powered trucks as well as on hydrogen and natural gas as alternative propellants. Especially in California, there is incredibly close cooperation between public authorities, car manufacturers and transport companies. The large fleets such as UPS are buying trucks and they then receive subsidies from the public authorities to run the tests. In return, the public authorities have access to these test results, which means that they are more or less working together as a trinity.

The future is scarily close, and this development should definitely be perceived as a wakeup call to the European companies. Five years ago, there were only IT companies in Silicon Valley. Today, all car manufacturers have a development centre in the region, which shows that the transport industry has gone digital.

Written by Business Policy Director Peter B. Jepsen