Driverless cars and traffic lights

[buffy]

While we were driving around in Melbourne over the weekend, a question occurred to me. How would driverless cars cope with those large intersections controlled by a conglomeration of traffic lights and red and green arrows and stuff? We considered that they might take their cue from the control boxes, but I doubt the infrastructure is really set up for that.

I've asked this in the Holiday Forum but I've pretty much just been told how fabulous computers are and all that and that lots of companies are working on it. And that if they can do facial recognition they can do this. I still am inclined to think that this level of discrimination of the visual noise is unlikely to be currently possible.

I take my suspicions from the poor progress in producing artificial retinal components.

[fsm]

Current driverless cars use video cameras to read traffic lights and this may be the cause of problems in the near future.

Eventually, when driverless cars become common, the cars will communicate with each other and a traffic management system so as to allow cars to continuously negotiate road crossings without the need for any traffic lights. As a car approaches an intersection it will arrange for a 'slot' to be available to pass through. Both roads at an intersection will flow with little or no interruption.

[buffy]

Thanks. I think that sounds optimistic.

[Helix]

I can get the driverless cars communicating at traffic lights to smooth out traffic flow. But what happens when pedestrians want to cross?

[Helix]

It just occurred to me that pedestrian traffic is the easiest to solve: bridges. With ramps, of course, for limited mobility access.

Carry on.

[roughbarked]

It just occurred to me that pedestrian traffic is the easiest to solve: bridges. With ramps, of course, for limited mobility access.

Carry on.

and or undepasses.

[Helix]

It just occurred to me that pedestrian traffic is the easiest to solve: bridges. With ramps, of course, for limited mobility access.

Carry on.

and or undepasses.

I considered that, but bridges are cheaper and easier to build*.


* In my long experience as Not an Engineer.