If current predictions prove to be correct, shared driverless cars will drastically cut the price of a car over the coming years. According to Brian Johnson, long-time automotive equity analyst at Barclays, the spread of car-sharing and driverless cars will cut the price of cars in half, Insurance Journal reported.
While this potential 40 percent drop in car prices is still decades away, driverless cars are already primed to impact road travel. What once seemed like a plot point from a science fiction novel is now an everyday reality. According to Autoblog, Nevada recently issued the first license for a driverless commercial truck. Audi's driverless car recently completed a 3,400 cross-country trip with zero tickets or accidents, CNN reported. Meanwhile, Tesla's Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk recently announced their cars will soon feature an autopilot mode, Mashable reported. This autopilot mode should be available by summer 2015.
In the near future, these types of automated vehicles will become much more common and replace traditional forms of transportation, disrupting the current auto industry. Travis Kalanick, the Chief Executive of the ride-sharing company, Uber, intends on employing a fleet of driverless cars once it becomes feasible, The Wall Street Journal reported. By removing the most expensive cost of a taxi ride - the driver - ride-sharing companies can significantly reduce the price of their services.
The growth of driverless vehicles will decrease the number of people who purchase their own cars, and all of these factors will work together to drive down the price of cars. With cheaper cars and safer roads, one can only imagine what kinds of low auto insurance rates motorists will have to pay.
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