Do you think self-driving cars are the future?

Absolutely not here!   Not a chance.  They drive like maniacs here,

You have to have things like clearly marked lanes, traffic signals, enforced rules of the road, etc. before you can ever hope to have self-driving cars! It will never happen here.

ddmcghee wrote:

You have to have things like clearly marked lanes, traffic signals, enforced rules of the road, etc. before you can ever hope to have self-driving cars! It will never happen here.

I'm not too sure. Tesla's autopilot is a bit limited because it behaves as you suggest, but new LIDAR technology is changing the playing field a lot. To all intents and purposes, the car sees the road pretty much as you do, then AI takes it from there.
It's not good enough yet, but give them a year or two.

Yes because the car sees the road as you do,  what does it do when there are NO STOP signs for blocks,  in either direction???? OR  you now have traffic police over riding the  traffic lights?

Never gonna happen here.

Never is defined as "at no time in the past or future; on no occasion; not ever".

History suggests the word is overused.

It is my firm belief, in time, road conditions simply won't matter as technology will compensate for whatever comes up.
We are still in the very early days of this technology but there is a whole industry out there (non-Tesla) working on solutions.





Improve on LIDAR, add sign reading tech and accurate mapping, then throw in state of the art AI, and you have a better driver than any human.
"If" is long gone; it's "When?"

You will NEVER WALK AGAIN - until tech says different.
Never say "Never" because some techhead out there will prove you wrong .. sooner or later.

Ok so let's be absolutely anal over this. 

In my lifetime here in the DR is close enough to never for me!

Fred, there are few accurate road signs or markings in DR and not always located where they should be. There is no conformity of the rules of the road and the unexpected is always happening. And maintaining anything hi tech is a novalty.

Self drive in developed nations is not yet anything like a safe reality so it is a seemingly pointless question to ask here and now in DR.

A much more relevant question today would be when will INTRANT establish vehicle test centres to ensure vehicles are roadworthy and get the scrap yard junk off the roads?

Well, there was news on this today and public private partnerships are being proposed to establish such centres and the tender process is being planned.

Now that would be our technological big leap forward.

Not anal; technological developments with a lot of funding pushing them along and, strange as it seems, geopolitics playing a part.
Keep an eye on developments from Israel, especially Innoviz Technologies - Their work is stunning - but they aren't alone.
Developed countries will see this first because, as you rightly say, their roads are more suited, but that will change.
10 years max before safe, reliable self driving cars are everywhere that can afford them, probably before.

lennoxnev wrote:

Fred, there are few accurate road signs or markings in DR and not always located where they should be. There is no conformity of the rules of the road and the unexpected is always happening. And maintaining anything hi tech is a novalty..

I took a look at your roads (Stills and video, including accidents) before I answered the question and took that into account.
Developments in AI, LIDAR, and other tech will win the day. As I have 15 years experience of very similar driving conditions, I believe I have a reasonable idea of the challenges as well as a pretty good overview of the tech.
I'll go further, cars in tropical countries won't just be self driving, they will be self charging so no charging station infrastructure will be required. Big bonus in the DR and a lot of other countries.
The somewhat negative view you express might very well be true over the border from you in Haiti, but that's an especially crap government and cash thing rather than tech issues.

The thing is, the next generation of self driving technology will have greater situational awareness than any human can manage - that including missing stop signs and dead traffic lights.

I see a time in the not too distant future, starting in developed countries, where driving licenses are in museums as interesting side notes to how cars developed.
Maybe a steering wheel but not a lot else, just as cars used to have a crank handle in case the starter motor failed.

Well you can continue to discuss this but the two of us responding have a combined close to 40 years here driving. We have seen the progress over the last 20 years or so. 

We are also well aware of technology, infrastructure and the costs needed to make this country even close to ready.  I don't care what other countries have done or are doing.  I care what we are doing

We still have hundreds of thousands of unsafe vehicles on the road.

We have the highest roadway death rate in the western hemisphere.

We get it!

Self Driving cars can already drive better than the majority of Dominicans.

windeguy wrote:

Self Driving cars can already drive better than the majority of Dominicans.

Hence the need for self driving vehicles

planner wrote:

We have the highest roadway death rate in the western hemisphere.

Hence the need for self driving vehicles

windeguy wrote:

Self Driving cars can already drive better than the majority of Dominicans.

But some of the very worst drivers in DR are expats who seem incapable of adjusting to the irregular driving conditions found. So perhaps self drive cars will come as a blessing for them in developed countries.

The discussion we could be having is about the transit, mobility and chronic driving issues that face DR and not some long term dream.

I agree Lennox.  So lets have that conversation.

Today there are new articles in the news about the feasibility study around the train from Santiago to Santo Domingo.

From Dominican Today:

Spanish company studies feasibility of Santo Domingo-Santiago train

The study for the construction of the Santo Domingo – Santiago Freight and Passenger Train was presented at a seminar organized by the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI ), which will determine the cost of the work to reduce the travel time between both cities to 40 minutes.

The information was confirmed by engineer Jhael Isa, director of the Urban and Interurban Mobility Projects Office of the Ministry of the Presidency, the executing agency for developing the structure. Isa points out that the study would take around six months, so it would be when the train’s cost, duration, and potential demand are determined, and whether or not it will be feasible to develop it.

To do this, he says, they will research by the international consulting firm of Spain ALG Global Infrastructure Advisors, SL, which won the tender made by CABEI, the entity that donated the funds.

If feasible, Isa points out, they would determine the most ideal way for the Dominican State, in terms of cost, if it is developed through a public-private partnership or otherwise.

Logistics corridor
It clarifies that it is a medium and long-term logistics project or corridor that seeks to connect logistics activity centers, free zones of Santiago, cargo consolidation center in La Vega, Constanza, Bonao, and that would reach the Port of Haina.

“This would allow all the export cargo, the cold chain, which today is a restriction for the country to have a logistical plus, so now it is being seen if it is feasible to solve it through this solution,” he explains.

What was discussed

In the seminar, the consulting firm in charge of the execution of the studies of “Market Analysis and Regulatory Reform to Support the Development of the Santiago de los Caballeros – Santo Domingo Railway Line” presented the initial report, where the objectives and methodology of the studies that will determine the market demand for the service were shown, and review and propose the regulatory, legal and governance frameworks of the country’s railway sector that allow the development of the Train project.

The event, which took place in a hybrid way, had the virtual participation of CABEI’s Executive President, Dr. Dante Mossi, and the Executive Director of the Republic of Korea before CABEI, Dongjoon Kim, while in person, at the Bank’s representative office in Santo Domingo, the Executive Director of the Dominican Republic participated before CABEI, Hostos Rizik participated.

“We are excited to know that starting today these important studies will begin that will support the development of a safe and efficient rail transport network for cargo and passengers, and that in six months we will have the results to move forward with the work that will undoubtedly improve the quality of life of Dominicans and will join the initiative promoted by the Bank to strengthen the transport and sustainable mobility sector in the region, ” Mossi said.

For his part, the executive director of the DR before CABEI, Hostos Rizik, commented that“This project is in line with the Government’s strategic objectives of promoting mobility, diversifying exports, contributing to economies of scale, and boosting economic growth and national competitiveness with a direct benefit to the communities surrounding the project and indirect for the entire country” In his participation, Dongjoon Kim noted that with this US$630,000 non-reimbursable technical cooperation approved under the Korea-CABEI Single Donor Trust Fund (KTF), Korea reaffirms its commitment to support countries in the region to promote new technologies in the transport sector that boost their competitiveness.

Mossi concluded by stating that “with this initiative, CABEI positions itself as the primary driver of rail mobility in the SICA region through high-impact projects that include similar initiatives in countries such as El Salvador, Guatemala, and Costa Rica.

The common denominator is the support they receive from their partner Korea taking advantage of their high technology, proven experience, and the transfer of knowledge and skills to these countries in this highly specialized sector, an opportunity that they must make the most of.

At the end of the seminar, Hostos Rizik Lugo, CABEI director for DR, explained on his Twitter account: “This morning we formally began the feasibility studies of the development of the rail network for cargo and passengers between the city of Santo Domingo and Santiago He emphasizes that this analysis will evaluate the integration and connectivity of the two most populated and productive cities in the Dominican Republic, Santiago de los Caballeros and Santo Domingo and link these two urban areas with the port of Haina.

This project is part of the design of the Integrated Transport System promoted by the Dominican State to provide answers with collective solutions to the problem of transport, mobility, and accessibility between cities, @BCIE_Org.

The Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) received a request for technical cooperation to carry out feasibility studies to determine the viability of the freight and passenger rail network from the Ministry of Finance of the Dominican Republic.

windeguy wrote:

Self Driving cars can already drive better than the majority of Dominicans.

What happens when your internet stops working for 2 minutes.  Would you want a car or bus or truck driving on the road like this, unmanned for even 5 seconds in your neighborhood streets?  Pretty sure this kind of system needs information from multiple sources at all times and what happens when the network is suddenly broken? Artificial intelligence is a set of algorithms but are written by human programmers making their own interpretations, flaws and all.  I know this is not related but cant we just get the water, sewage, and electricity running to every house first, and find a way to improve transit, get rid of the conjestion and polution, for the benefit of all the people.

yeah you are right this need proper planning and long term strategies. everything thing takes time. good things happens and takes time lets hope for the best.
stay blessed!

@Tippj   Yes, I understand the economics. Just making a comment on how nice it would be from a noise perspective. I think it would make a huge difference. Won't see it in my lifetime though.

@rlwoodz

Yes, unless police start enforcing and ticketing bad drivers, it will continue.  Not a fan of self driving cars either, even though I love technology.  Needs to be safe and reliable.

- @Karin1

I remember our first ride in the DR when with a tremor in my voice I asked our Canadian driver “ Where the hell are the police!?”, only to see them driving the same way!