Dr. Daniel Fagnant explains why self-driving cars will help ease traffic patterns in a recent article, 5 reasons self-driving taxis are going to be amazing, from www.vox.com.
“In recent years, lots and lots of pundits — including me — have speculated about how self-driving cars will change American cities. But almost all the talk has been just that — speculation. Because we can’t collect data on the social effects of a technology that isn’t available yet.
But a recent study does the next best thing: it starts with detailed data about today’s traffic patterns, and then uses a computer simulation to predict what would happen if drivers switched to taking rides in self-driving taxis. The research, by University of Texas at Austin professor Kara Kockelman and the University of Utah’s Daniel Fagnant, provides unprecedented insight into how self-driving vehicles will change the urban landscape.”