Google will have perfected the wearable search/communications engine placing all the world an eye-blink away. And the albatross automobile will shrink to person size.
The 'real' way to do it is to have a hive of small self-guided transport pods guided taking little more street or sidewalk space than a person does walking. The little vehicles would even plug in around the city drawing electrical power from fusion plants. Science fiction?
Hitachi brought out the Robot for Personal Intelligent Transport System (Ropits) in Japan today.
The vehicle seats one and has a backup joystick 'just in case.' The rider simply selects the destination on a Google map touchscreen and sits back - hands free.
The pod is equipped with 'active suspension' which controls each wheel individually so it can jump curbs and potholes and remain upright. In short, it's the beginning of the end of the heavy, gas guzzling monsters that inhabit streets in cities today.
