Platooning, a new way to ruin driving experience?

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"Vehicle platooning, as envisaged by the SARTRE project, is a convoy of vehicles where a professional driver in a lead vehicle drives a line of other vehicles. Each car measures the distance, speed and direction and adjusts to the car in front. All vehicles are totally detached and can leave the procession at any time. But once in the platoon, drivers can relax and do other things while the platoon proceeds towards its long haul destination.

The tests carried out included a lead vehicle and single following car. The steering wheel of the following car moves by itself as the vehicle smoothly follows the lead truck around the country road test track. The driver is able to drink coffee or read a paper, using neither hand nor foot to operate his vehicle."

http://www.volvocars.com/uk/top/about/news-events/Pages/default.aspx?itemid=93
 
In theory, for a group taking a long road trip, it's not a bad idea. As long as there's still an option to drive manually, it would be ok. On long trips, people could trade off lead cars, making the trip much less tiring, due to not driving the whole time.
 
If it's a long trip why not just put your car on a train and get incredible MPG?

Lets face it, many people who take car vacations do it so they can have their own car at the destination, and not deal with airports/rentals etc.
 
Originally Posted By: eljefino
...

Lets face it, many people who take car vacations do it so they can have their own car at the destination, and not deal with airports/rentals etc.


Yes! I know people who have almost given up on air travel within the US, or even to Canada. Careless baggage handling, flight scheduling problems/delays, some dreadful airports and their employees, airlines that don't care anymore, and the TSA to top it off.

I really like my nearby LEX and SDF airports, but the major hubs in this region, like ATL, are despicable.
grin.gif
 
Originally Posted By: Steve S
What is a professional driver?

Ha ha good point. I could imagine the way this could end up is that the top priority of the "professional driver" would be to cover his/her behind and avoid any potentially dangerous situation by slowing down. And since a potentially dangerous situation happens pretty much all the time, we'd end up with a sleepy, "rolling roadblock" in the right lane. Then semi trucks would have to pass the long roadblock which would slow everyone else down behind them.
 
Originally Posted By: saaber1
"The driver is able to drink coffee or read a paper, using neither hand nor foot to operate his vehicle."

Big deal!! We have lots of drivers around here that can do all those things, and more, now! There's not a "professional driver" anywhere in the herd either!
 
The purpose of this is to decrease the distance between cars, increase the traffic density on the road and get more cars through the system. The real goal is your morning commute not the cross country road trip.

You come up to the exit and enter the expressway. The computer system plugs your car into a "platoon" (with way less than typical safe distances because the computers can stop you much quicker id needed) moving a consistent maximum speed to your exit where you are released from the "platoon".

Your car will be a car on the train.
 
Originally Posted By: MonumentOiler
The purpose of this is to decrease the distance between cars, increase the traffic density on the road and get more cars through the system. The real goal is your morning commute not the cross country road trip.

You come up to the exit and enter the expressway. The computer system plugs your car into a "platoon" (with way less than typical safe distances because the computers can stop you much quicker id needed) moving a consistent maximum speed to your exit where you are released from the "platoon".

Your car will be a car on the train.


Until the "professional driver" has to emergency brake or swerve to avoid a hazard. Then you hope and pray that:

1) The rest of the cars in the platoon have comparable stopping distances

2) They have been properly maintained (worn tires, low tire pressure, brakes in need of servicing, bad shocks/struts leading to poor handling in an emergency, etc, etc.)

And of course since there is no way to guarantee these conditions are met then you have an aftermath where you're platoon looks like it was just shelled with mortar fire.
 
I can already see how that would workout here:

1. Lead car passes the moose that's just stepped out onto the shoulder of the TCH its about to wander across. Lead driver misses it and doesn't even realize how close he came.

2. Driver behind is oblivious as he's reading his newspaper and collides head on with the moose, crushing his car and him along with it.

3. Platooning is then made illegal in this province.

In other areas, take your pick of wildlife or other applicable car destroying object and substitute it for #1.

Bad idea. Takes follow the stupid to new levels.

-Spyder
 
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I think someone with too much brains and too little common sense was watching a sci-fi/action movie marathon and saw Demolition Man and Minority Report and thought, "Oh man that'd be so cool, we can totally do this", neglecting the fact that our highways are anything but sterile dystopian concrete jungles.
 
I had this idea as a teenager exept the process involved large electromagnets in the front and rear bumpers, but back then we didn't even have computers in the car so I figured it would be some sort of manual control /link-up.I know it would work on semi's.Talk about a 'free ride'.
 
Originally Posted By: buickman50401
Demolition Man and Minority Report


"I Robot" has a sweet computer controlled road system, at least until Will Smith gets mixed up into it.
 
Originally Posted By: MonumentOiler
Originally Posted By: buickman50401
Demolition Man and Minority Report


"I Robot" has a sweet computer controlled road system, at least until Will Smith gets mixed up into it.

Yeah but they didn't have cars that exploded into a ball of foam when the car crashed.

"Self drive on."
"Auto drive is malfunctioning..."
"Self drive engage..."
*whoop whoop clang clang clang
"Brake!"
"Malfunction..."
"Brake now you mickey mouse piece of shi..."
*CRASH!*
 
Originally Posted By: eljefino
If it's a long trip why not just put your car on a train and get incredible MPG?

Good idea. They have motorhome vacations in Mexico where you put your motorhome on a railroad flatbed car and it takes you through all kinds of fantastic scenery. I live in Michigan and would love to put my motorhome on a train and get dropped of at the front range of the Rocky Mountains.
 
I've done something similar, but it was called "riding a bus." There must have been 20 people not actively driving while the lead driver was in control of everything.
 
I think this idea goes right in with other ideas of the Baby Boomers that never worked out, like getting abducted by flying saucers. Just try this in Los Angeles and see how far you get.
 
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