Home > Future of the car
The future of the car is a controversial topic, with some advocates arguing that the car has no future, and others that the car will in the future supplant most other forms of transport.There are significant challenges in the near future to continued use of the car:
- Car use is a significant factor in pollution, and contributes to global warming.
- Increasing population and prosperity are increasing traffic congestion.
- Reserves of fossil fuels, particularly oil, are finite.
- Cars are one of the most dangerous form of transport. 1 million people die each year in car accidents worldwide.
1 Technological Advances
There are many possible advances in technology that could influence the future of the car:
- The smart car and driverless car making driving easier and safer.
- Cars linking up to form platoons.
- Cars platooning on guideway s on a Personal rapid transit system, such as ULTra , for increased speed, safety and economy.
- Dual-mode cars able to use relatively small electric motors and fuel supplies or battery reserves for door-to-door service off electrically powered arterials.
- Cars may be able to use low carbon fuels such as hydrogen, fuel cells, and electricity instead of the internal combustion engine. (see hydrogen carA hydrogen car is an automobile which uses hydrogen (usually obtained from decomposition of methane, and sometimes from water using electrolysis) as its primary source of power for locomotion. The main benefit of using pure hydrogen as a power source is t, electric vehicleAn electric vehicle is a vehicle that is propelled by electric motors. This is the case for metros and usually trams, and for some trains (i. for some locomotives and often for multiple units), and for electric trolleybuses. The term is used in particular).
- Magnetic levitationMagnetic levitation is the process by which an object is suspended above another object with no other support but magnetic fields. The electromagnetic force is used to counteract the effects of the gravitational force. Earnshaw's theorem proved conclusive or maglevMaglev can refer to General Magnetic levitation Magnetic levitation trains. guideways with off-line stations for on-demand, independent travel is an attractive but distant goal.
- The flying carIn the 1950s, the western world was recovering from World War II and everything seemed possible. The flying car was a vision of transportation in the 21st century, and a common feature of science fiction futures. Several designs exist (such as Moller's sk, such as the Moller SkycarThe Moller Skycar is a theorized personal VTOL (vertical take-off and landing) aircraft: a " flying car" called a "volantor" by its inventor Paul Moller, who has been attempting to develop such vehicles for many years. The Skycar passed its first real fli.
- Human transporters, such as the Segway, lowering the importance of the car for short-distance transportation.
2 External links
National Academy of Engineering (NAE), Board on Energy and Environmental Systems (BEES)
