Self driving cars change what roads mean. Once we get to full fledged self driving taxi culture, cars won't park. Car sharing will be common at the cheaper end.

Self driving cars change what roads mean. Once we get to full fledged self driving taxi culture, cars won't park. Car sharing will be common at the cheaper end. So it becomes a lot more like busses. Much smaller fleet on the road. I expect that roads will get pedestrianized, returning them to common usage, because a Google car will calmly stop if a child is kicking a ball in the road. Trains are intrinsically unequal, they serve hub towns at best and cities only at worst, they are dirty, cramped, noisy, unprivate and they don't go when or where you want to go. Even with Google maps seaming together journeys out of trains and busses, you end up waiting and walking a lot. And trains are an intrinsic monopoly with a staggering up front investment, you can't make them better with market forces. I foresee self driving cars cannibalizing the train's market of people who just want to pay for journeys rather than the vehicle.