total speed control of vehicles on major highways.

Daily writing prompt

What’s a piece of technology you’re convinced will exist in 20 years?

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One piece of technology I’m convinced we’ll see within the next 20 years is total speed control of vehicles on major highways.

Cars already know the speed limit, can maintain distance from the vehicle ahead, stay in their lane, brake automatically, and in some cases even drive themselves for long stretches. The next logical step is highways where vehicles communicate with each other and with the road infrastructure itself.

I can easily imagine a future where, once you enter certain highways, your vehicle’s speed is automatically controlled by the system. No speeding, no tailgating, smoother traffic flow, better fuel economy, and probably far fewer accidents.

Drivers may still control the car on local roads, but on major interstate highways I think we’ll eventually hand much of that responsibility over to computers.

Twenty years ago, the idea of a car steering, braking, and accelerating itself sounded like science fiction. Today it’s sitting in dealership showrooms.