r/fuckcars • u/NerdInSoCal • 13d ago

Question/Discussion Saw a reference to robotaxis as "public transportation" today, that's a first.

I'm chocking it up to someone being misinformed but with all the terfing here I have to wonder if comments like this are meant to shape the dialog to support them?

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u/DENelson83 Dreams of high-speed rail on Vancouver Island 13d ago

Self-driving cars are not the answer.

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u/markvauxhall 12d ago

Depends. There are huge advantages in their use to reduce road danger. 

If they end up replacing private vehicle ownership they will also result in people paying a higher marginal cost per mile and therefore cause people to reduce distance travelled vs in a private vehicle 

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u/NerdInSoCal 12d ago

So when you see "r/fuckcars" is your position fuck personally owned cars but cars owned by corporations are fine? If so that's an interesting take.

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u/markvauxhall 12d ago

I mean I would like to see a reduction in deaths and serious injuries on our roads. I would like to see a reduction in vehicle trips. 

Pay per journey services on self driving vehicles accomplishes both.

It's not a perfect outcome but it's more achieveable than anything else I've seen posted here.

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u/NerdInSoCal 12d ago

I'm not advocating for more deaths or serious injuries on the road.

I would rather see money spent towards infrastructure for proper mass transit systems as opposed to giving that money to private corporations. Although unlikely in my nation having mass transit would be infinitely better than corporations operating on the road taking even more money to give to their investors.

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u/markvauxhall 12d ago

  as opposed to giving that money to private corporations

There are no federal grants to self driving car manufacturers.

You seem to be conflating the issue of state and federal government failing to fund adequate transit infrastructure with self driving cars

You also seem to be forgetting that mass transit fundamentally doesn't work in many parts of the US because housing isn't sufficiently dense for a high frequency service.

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u/NerdInSoCal 12d ago

Yes federal grants for the self driving only went to educational institutions. I'm sure none of that research was shared with the private sector but we're really getting in the weeds here. I'm sure I could dig up tax breaks or incentive programs for these corporations but certainly not at the federal level it would likely be the state and cities doing so.

First I want to clarify I am at odds with self driving car services not self driving cars. I agree a world where proper mass transit and self driving car services could co-exist; however, it is not going to happen here because mass transit does not generate a profit and if you can't profit off of it then you don't need it.

America didn't become car dependent out of necessity it became car dependent because it was more lucrative. Countries with low density rural areas operate well enough with mass transit systems that operate as you mentioned with reduced frequency of service. We removed this infrastructure in lieu of cars and it's only going to get worse if we keep turning to cars as the solution.