To Drive or Not to Drive? || Autonomous vs Traditional Vehicles

I learned to drive about seven years ago, and I have been doing so ever since. It has become more like a hobby, as I do enjoy it and never really turn down the opportunity to drive. I feel this very different expression of myself whenever I do. And more like a musical instrument, it's an extension of myself—the vehicle, invariably. However, the rise of AI in the field of automobiles has been stunning in recent times, and it begs the question, "Autonomous vehicles or traditional ones?"

As a graduate of mechatronics engineering, I've been following the developments in autonomous vehicles for a long time and have been fascinated by how the world will change with the introduction of self-driving cars and all. Surely, with an opportunity to drive or even own one, I am not going to slack off. But really, if you could only choose one of the two worlds, it would depend on certain factors.

Self-driving cars are, you know, essentially cars that can drive themselves. Duh... And before they were all over the internet, we could see or hear about them in films and animation where futuristic themes are described.

How do they work? Well, they basically have sensors such as cameras, lidars, proximity sensors, heat sensors, speed sensors, etc., all of which the vehicle uses to observe its environment and make decisions about moving the vehicle. And, of course, then we have the AI to do that decision-making. They are like the eyes, ears, and skin for us, but for the vehicle. Therefore, a person wouldn't need to do much to have their autonomous vehicle move them from point to point, except that comes with a clause.

Despite the fact that these vehicles have come a long way in recent years, they are still not perfect. This is to say that they still encounter problems in certain driving conditions. Take where I am from as an example, which does not even provide a fair environment for self-driving cars to operate optimally. And for these kinds of vehicles to operate as they should, they required similar environments to those they were trained for, and that includes good roads. How does a Telsa want to manageably navigate in places with no traffic lights, a gazillion potholes per mile, and drivers with cheese for brains? not well, I presume. And this brings us back to traditional cars.

One thing automonous vehicle does with driving is that it takes away the practical driving experience from its owner.. And some of us, like me, love that very much. Traditional cars require human drivers, and they provide that tactile driving experience. For some, it's enjoyable and engaging, although stressful, tiring, and time-consuming.

The concern for safety is always number one. We are not all great at making the best decisions, and therefore, we make human error some times, and this translates into our driving too. Knucklehead drivers, however, make more errors. And this is another part where autonomous cars may do some good.

Imagine if everyone was using autonomous vehicles—or almost everyone, at least—and those vehicles could all communicate with one another. Imagine the synergy we would have between them all if they were on the road together. We would sure have fewer accidents as compared to how we've always had it with traditional cars. Driving may just not be as fun.

What if there's some kind of glitch somewhere? What happens to me in my self-driving car when I hear that I have been hacked? Ughh... that wouldn't be the best news to hear. And this makes me want to lean towards traditional cars, as I cannot just be hacked out of the blue—unless with some liquor, maybe.

I can go back and forth, although finitely, on the pros and cons of autonomous and self-driving vehicles. But for here and now, since self-driving cars are "not-perfect," and for the fact that I love to drive with my own hands, I might as well just stick with traditional cars. So yeah, driving on my own it is, although that is subject to change in the future as technology advances in autonomous vehicles.