TripZillaImagine your favourite destinations with driverless vehicles when you commute from one place to another. Does that seem impossible to you? If so, you might end up eating your words.
A lot of people and even governments believe that autonomous mobility is the future of land transportation. A study conducted by the Roland Berger Automotive Disruption Radar (ADR) indicated that the demand for electric and hybrid vehicles has increased from 1.5% in 2017 to 6.9% in HY1 2021. Since then, the number of cities that have implemented restrictions on normal petrol and diesel cars leapt from 88 to 155 as well.
This means that more and more cities around the world are improving their public transportation systems; simultaneously, locals end up preferring to commute rather than drive their own cars. The more locals don’t feel the need to drive thanks to efficient public transport, the more appealing the idea of driverless vehicles becomes. Not to mention that electric cars would be more sustainable for the environment.
According to the ADR study, countries in Europe and Asia are the most prepared to eventually shift their transportation modes to driverless vehicles, whether in buses or taxis.
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The top 10 countries prepared for self-driving vehicles
Image credit: Marco Pregnolato
- Netherlands
- China
- Sweden
- Singapore
- Norway
- South Korea
- UK
- Germany
- Spain
- France
These top 10 nations remained largely unchanged since previous studies. However, there are surprising new additions to the top 25 ranking. The new five entrants include Norway (#5), Israel (#11), Brazil (#19), Thailand (#22), and Indonesia (ties with Thailand at #22).
Singapore predicted to lead autonomous mobility in SEA
Image credit: Ivan Yeo
When it comes to Southeast Asia, Singapore is most likely to be the first country to roll out driverless vehicles on a large scale. According to Roland Berger principal Timothy Wong, “Singapore has been pushing to develop autonomous mobility and has done so with clearly-defined regulations and several large zones in the territory open to testing.”
In addition, Singapore is already experimenting with driverless vehicles for their armed forces. “More trials are also underway for specialised use, such as the recently-announced trials of driverless vehicles at Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) sites,” said Wong.
According to Mashable SE Asia, Singapore is quite ready for a future of driverless vehicles thanks to its forward-thinking mobility innovation. “Eighty-five percent of its current population knows at least one person who has given up on cars to use other modes of transport — this is significantly higher than the global average of 60%,” stated Mashable SE Asia.
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The Little Red Dot may be smaller than most countries, but it’s definitely got big brains for a more convenient and sustainable future for its citizens. We’re already excited to see how autonomous mobility will be adapted, not only in a technologically advanced place like Singapore, but also in other destinations where public transport comes in various forms. Driverless vehicles, here we come!
Featured image credit: Cris Tagupa | Unsplash
