Future of transport

[mavhc]

Both sides are idiots, but only one side is encased in a massive chunk of metal that can easily kill the other.

 

In conclusion: self driving cars.

[LeMarchand]

In conclusion: self driving cars.

 

Unfortunately in the real world there is no Dominic Toretto to save us.

 

[mavhc]

No self driving cars have been hacked, so that's fine. Pretty sure Google can do computer security

[Ditto]

No self driving cars have been hacked, so that's fine. Pretty sure Google can do computer security

What? I just saw loads in the previous post

[6Foot2]

Link: Virgin Hyperloop pod transport tests first passenger journey [bBC News]...

 

Virgin Hyperloop conducted its first passenger test at the company’s 500 meter DevLoop test site in Las Vegas, on 8 November 2020...

[Andrew_C]

If it is SO safe, why are they wearing such OTT seatbelts?

[LeMarchand]

No self driving cars have been hacked

 

Zey vill be hacked. Zose of us vith ze superior vehicles vill not be forced to drive ze vay zat zose vith ze inferior vehicles must. Ve must not be expected to obey ze speed limits, vait in ze queues or use ze indicators. All must bow before our superior engineering!

[Andrew_C]

None of those words are long enough...

 

Ve use vords like "Flippenflappenshittenshifters"

[Ditto]

 

I'd assumed the ride would be total smooth! It looked a little jerky, but clearly the passengers enjoyed their ride.

[stevejp]

Zey vill be hacked. Zose of us vith ze superior vehicles vill not be forced to drive ze vay zat zose vith ze inferior vehicles must. Ve must not be expected to obey ze speed limits, vait in ze queues or use ze indicators. All must bow before our superior engineering!

 

Can’t begin to imagine which particular makes of cars you may be referring to...

[mavhc]

https://electrek.co/2021/06/10/tesla-hire-self-driving-car-test-drivers-around-the-world/amp/

[6Foot2]

Link: First full-size driverless bus trials to begin in Scotland - BBC News

 

 

The UK's first full-sized driverless buses will begin trials in Scotland this week with a view to having passengers on board later this summer.

 

Road testing of the autonomous single-decker vehicles gets under way on a 14-mile route between Edinburgh and Fife.

 

The two-week trial, on a route that crosses the Forth Road Bridge, is the latest in a series held in the UK.

 

A driver will still be on the bus as a back-up initially for passenger safety and to comply with UK legislation.

 

It follows previous trials of smaller, shuttle buses in London, Cambridge and Birmingham, while another driverless bus pilot is also due to start in Inverness later this year.

 

The CAVForth project was initially scheduled to begin in 2019 but was delayed as the Covid pandemic hit with a knock-on effect on the supply chain.

 

It will see five single-deck buses operating between Ferrytoll Park and Ride in Fife and the Edinburgh Park Train and Tram interchange.

 

The buses are fitted with sensor and control technology which allows them to run on pre-selected roads without the safety driver having to intervene or take control.

 

"For the moment there is a legal requirement to have somebody behind the wheel at all times, so we will definitely have a driver in the cab to monitor the system and be able to take over if needed, although that shouldn't be the case," the project's manager Louise Simpson told the BBC's Good Morning Scotland programme.

 

"We will also have a second member of staff on board in the saloon with the passengers, offering reassurance and a more personal customer service experience for them."

 

If all goes to plan, the buses could soon provide a service carrying up to 36 passengers across the bridge, with capacity for over 10,000 passengers a week.

 

Until legislation changes, there will always be a safety driver, but Ms Simpson hopes the law will "eventually be signed off" so drivers don't need to be in the cab and can focus on a secondary role interacting with passengers.

 

Bus operator Stagecoach has partnered with Fusion Processing, manufacturer Alexander Dennis and Transport Scotland for the UK government-funded project.

 

It has already held successful depot-based trials, track testing and virtual simulation to fine tune the autonomous drive systems.

 

'Improvement in safety'

 

Ms Simpson told BBC Scotland the main benefit of the scheme would be improved safety.

 

"It is estimated that over 90% of road traffic accidents are down to human error," she said.

 

"There is always a limit to what any human can see and anticipate whereas these vehicles will have a 360 degree view of their surroundings with an ability to see further than any human could.

 

"We hope with the ability to take preventative action to avoid a collision, we will see an improvement in safety.

 

"But with the driver not being confined to the cab area, they will also have more time to offer a better customer experience without having to operate the vehicle, keep the service to time and the other pressures our drivers currently face."

 

The buses have six levels of driving automation, with zero to two meaning a driver must constantly supervise and is always driving, while levels three to five allow the vehicle to drive itself.

 

Able to operate at a SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) level four, it means no driver attention is required for safety but self-driving is only supported in limited areas or circumstances.

 

'Exciting milestone'

 

Sam Greer, regional director of Stagecoach in Scotland, said it was a "hugely exciting project" and a major step towards launching the UK's first full-sized autonomous bus service.

 

Jim Hutchinson, chief executive of Fusion Processing which has developed the sensor technology, called it "the world's most complex and ambitious autonomous vehicle programme".

 

"On-road testing is an exciting milestone in the development of autonomous commercial vehicles and we look forward to welcoming passengers onboard in a few months' time," he said.

 

Trials of a driverless bus are also due to start in Inverness later this year.

 

The pilot will cover a 2km route linking the Beechwood campus of the city's university with the Inverness Retail and Business Park.

 

It is expected the shuttle service will be used by students and people working on the site to access the shopping and business areas during the day.

[6Foot2]

Link: Rolls-Royce and easyJet test aircraft engine running on hydrogen | easyJet | The Guardian

 

Rolls-Royce has said it has run an aircraft engine on hydrogen in what is thought to be a world first for the aviation industry, which is considering using the fuel to decarbonise air travel.

 

The FTSE 100 engineering company said the ground test was a “major step towards proving that hydrogen could be a zero-carbon aviation fuel of the future”, in a joint project with the airline easyJet.

 

The test took place outdoors at Boscombe Down, a British military facility in Wiltshire. It used a converted Rolls-Royce AE 2100-A regional aircraft engine that is generally used to power turboprop planes. Turboprop engines are used to drive a propeller on slower-speed short-haul flights, rather than driving the fan required for faster speeds in jet engines. Building and maintaining jet engines is Rolls-Royce’s main business line.

 

Aviation faces one of the sternest tests of any industry to decarbonise as the world seeks to move to net zero carbon emissions by 2050 in order to prevent catastrophic global heating of more than 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. Alternative power sources already exist for most forms of transport, but the energy density requirements for planes have ruled out current battery technology for all but the shortest journeys.

 

The industry is toying with hydrogen – which produces only water when it burns – as a possible energy source for some flights, although many analysts have serious doubts over whether it could ever be viable for longer journeys. Michael Liebreich, the founder of Bloomberg New Energy Finance, has calculated that a Boeing 747 jumbo jet would require more than 1m litres of hydrogen to deliver the equivalent range of 250,000 litres of jet fuel.

 

Fuel tanks of that size – which would also have to be kept at high pressure – would probably require a complete redesign of the plane. Nevertheless, the plane manufacturers Airbus and Boeing, customers of Rolls-Royce, are making initial forays into developing hydrogen technology. In the shorter term they are hoping for so-called sustainable aviation fuel to decarbonise the industry.

 

Green hydrogen for the Rolls-Royce tests was supplied by the European Marine Energy Centre, generated using renewable energy at the centre’s hydrogen production and tidal test facility on Eday in the Orkney Islands off the north coast of Scotland.

 

Grazia Vittadini, the Rolls-Royce chief technology officer, said it was an “exciting milestone” and a “landmark achievement”.

 

“We are pushing the boundaries to discover the zero-carbon possibilities of hydrogen, which could help reshape the future of flight,” she said.

 

Grant Shapps, the UK business secretary, said in a statement: “The UK is leading the global shift to guilt-free flying, and today’s test by Rolls-Royce and easyJet is an exciting demonstration of how business innovation can transform the way we live our lives.”

 

Shapps said it was a “true British success story”, although he also incorrectly referred to hydrogen being used in a “jet engine” for the first time.

[LeMarchand]

if they solve the problem, great. Shouldn't people also be thinking about whether they really need to make that long distance flight? What's more important: Taking your kids to Disneyland in Florida, or leaving a planet their kids will be able to live in?

[mavhc]

The CAVForth bus is now expected to take passengers in Jan 2023

 

Tesla probably has 200000 cars running FSD Beta now. https://www.teslafsdtracker.com/ has some user submitted stats, note there's 3 pages in the iframe

 

Meanwhile Waymo is heading to LA and using its fleet of cars to map the weather https://blog.waymo.com/

 

Also

[Andrew_C]

they really need to make that long distance flight?

And in fact they aren't even looking at long haul - this is for short haul that really should be done by train. (With obvious exceptions)

[Ditto]

Would be good to see data on UK and other countries.

[mavhc]

Would be good to see data on UK and other countries.

 

Data for?

[Ditto]

What you posted about Tesla - looked US biased to me - maybe not?

[Sonic007]

As prime Minister I would do the following:

 

- Re-Nationalise the railways

 

- Create a proper detailed plan to ensure the UK is fully connected with electric trains. No half baked sollutions, new proper tracks laid, faster trains, and cleaner trains due to electric instead of diesal.

 

The new enhanced electric railways would be funded by reducing MP salaries, higher taxes on offshore companies trading in the UK, increaed taxes on companies who are not meeting net zero carbon emissions, and a new tax on energy suppliers who would pay 10% of proffits to the government.

[Andrew_C]

Sonic for PM!

 

I'd add to that - an integrated approach to transport. Bus stations at rail stations. Timetables than work - so you don't get to a station to find your connection fails by 59 minutes - every damn time.

Edited November 29, 2022 by Andrew_C

[mavhc]

Railways already lose money though, because cars are too cheap.

 

MPs salaries are only £55 million, that could buy about 1 train.

 

2019-20 rail industry got about £10 billion from fares, and £6.5 billion from government, plus misc to get about £20 billion. They spent £10 billion running the trains, £8.4 billion running the track, plus misc, to spend about £20 billion.

 

There were 1731 million rail journeys in uk in 2019, that's £11.55/journey, say £7 cost + £3 from government + misc.

 

Meanwhile we spent £12 billion on roads. That's £367/car. Tax is about £150. Plus 58p/litre if you buy fuel. Average 831 litres of fuel per year, so £480. So cars pay for the road, but not the pollution

 

 

Energy Profits will be 35% next year for oil and gas companies, and 45% for electricity generators.

 

It's currently 25%. In addition there's a 40% tax on oil and gas providers' income.

 

This should generate another £20 billion, in addition to the existing £20 billion for the profits levy, in the next 6 years.

 

£80 billion in 6 years in total, so £13 billion/year.

 

80% tax relief for investment in decarbonisation investments.

 

I'd just tax every company the amount it costs to clean up the pollution they cause.

[jmak]

What you posted about Tesla - looked US biased to me - maybe not?

Pretty much only running in the US at the minute. Other countries have stricter regulations - or Tesla doesn't want to take the risk with legal challenges in other jurisdictions.

 

The FSD you can buy in this country at the minute just gives you the promise that when it's available, you'll get it for no extra cost. In the UK it's currently £3400 more than the next level down of driver assist and this enables a single feature: stopping at a red light.

[mavhc]

Also Canada, as they have very similar road systems, EU is still rewriting its self driving laws

[LincolnE]

Many short journeys (for the 19-30 people planes they are initially looking at) are for remote or small remote areas where public transport isn't really feasible, from what I can tell anyway.

Also not all entirely passenger, could be for commercial uses - farming for example, postal and the like.