[ExI] mass transit again

[Anders Sandberg]

There might be other curious hybrids between private and public 
transport. Vehicle platooning has just been demonstrated, allowing cars 
to form automatic convoys (saving a bit of fuel and improving safety).
http://edition.cnn.com/2011/TECH/innovation/01/18/sartre.platoon.road.train/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-12215915
Of course, this mainly makes sense on highways, so it doesn't solve many 
of the other problems in this thread.

Then there is the idea of share taxis, jitney cabs and paratransit. An 
interesting enhancement could be for private drivers to have a hardware 
device in the car that 1) authentificates the car as a potential taxi, 
2) allows customers to hail the taxi web, 3) on entry, logs passenger 
identity (based on credit card, cellphone or some other suitable token), 
time and location in off-site storage. This makes it problematic for the 
driver *and* customer to cheat or rob, since it will be obvious who did 
it. Sprinkle with reputation systems etc.

I have always lived near effective mass transit, to the degree that I 
never seriously considered getting a driver's licence. I am sure many 
Americans would be shocked by hearing this. But it is also clear to me 
that private transport is a very important complement - there are clear 
limits to what mass transit can achieve. We need private transports of 
different kinds for the long tail.

-- 
Anders Sandberg,
Future of Humanity Institute 
James Martin 21st Century School 
Philosophy Faculty 
Oxford University