I remember reading a sci fi novel with that idea too. The scene had a guy packing up his luggage in a self-driving car, watching the car get in line with a long

I remember reading a sci fi novel with that idea too. The scene had a guy packing up his luggage in a self-driving car, watching the car get in line with a long-distance "train" of self-driving cars, and then falling asleep so he can make it to the next city. My daughter is on the autism spectrum. I think she is capable of driving herself, but at least right now, she shows no interest in it. Instead, I'm teaching her how to get around herself on a bicycle. And while I am still intent on helping her develop self-reliance, the future she will be working as an adult will likely involve self-driving cars. I think it is very likely that the cost of self-driving cars will be higher. Middle class is already getting squeezed, and if having on-demand transportation is more affordable, it is more accessible for people. When self-driving cars have lower insurance premiums, then manually-driven cars would be left in the domain of the hobbyists and the wealthy -- driving it for fun, rather than because you need to make a living. At the same time, I can see bicycles and electric bicycles becoming even more popular. There was a kickstarter campaign a couple years ago documenting how roads were originally made for bikes, with the first paved roads being lobbied by bicycle groups rather than auto groups. We also have some interesting things: (1) in the early days of the auto industry, the auto industry pushed forward legislation for traffic safety, shifting the idea is that if a pedestrian is on the road, it is the pedestrian's fault, and that "roads are made for cars" (2) buying out trolly companies so people would buy more cars and (3) this idea of "roads are made for cars" has become so ingrained in our mindset that it influenced city and urban design for almost a hundred years. I'm glad to see this is starting to swing back the other way.