Automotive industry goes I-Robot

Published on Wednesday, 19 January 2011 16:20

By Adam Douglas

With the future of the auto industry being constantly questioned due to oil levels dropping and the increasing costs in the price of fuel, car companies have ‘gone green’ but do they actually make a real difference? And are there any other methods that could be explored?

Car companies are caught in a catch twenty- two. Although trying to make more environmentally friendly cars is important, it has been hard to make a car that is both green and appealing to the public. People still want stylish powerful cars to show off. I cannot remember the last time I heard somebody brag about the fact they have a hybrid, whilst a Ferrari on the other hand would turn most heads.

The United Nations General Assembly Resolution is “Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.” There is one system that I think ticks the boxes, but is it a viable option?

Christian Forg's Speedway

Christian Forg’s speedway is the idea that it is possible to completely change the way we drive today by creating an auto-piloted transport that would run on a magnetic system. This idea seems brilliant at a glance but what repercussions could it have?

Forg’s idea would completely remove all emissions once it was in place; on top of that it would eliminate the possibility of human error on the road saving millions of lives.

I really like this as an idea; the space age vision of getting into a car that can drive you to your destination, park itself and then is at your beck and call when you need to go on your next adventure.

It also sounds to me like something the Government should look into. It would make a change from recent history where the Government’s idea of making the world a more environmentally friendly place is to throw money at it without actually making a significant difference.

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A Very Big Change

However, there are many flaws to this plan. To start with the process of constructing the speedway and production of the transport may mean that - although this could be a long term solution - in the short term it could have huge ramifications that have yet to be realised. For the speedway to be implemented all current roads would have to be replaced; this would lead to huge start-up costs and without the knowledge of how successful the system could be, how could anybody supply the revenue to get this venture moving?

Also, this is not the best time for a change of this magnitude. People tend to care less about the environment when they have financial issues and also more adverse to change. This in turn leads to caring less about sustainability and in relation to the speedway, change would definitely not be the most supported idea. This brings us to the question, how much do people actually consider the changing environmental conditions a threat to their own lives? I believe that this is not a priority to the majority of the population.

Overall there is not a clear cut answer to the future of the auto industry and the appropriate action to take. This is because there are always hidden costs, not only monetary wise but for every action there is always a reaction. For instance, the electric car may cut emissions, but where does the electricity come from? For the whole world to run on electric cars there would have to be huge power stations. How can this be a sensible step to making the world more environmentally friendly?

There are many questions when thinking about the future of the auto industry. What will happen to the environment if we carry on as we are? Will there be a final solution to deal with the depleting levels of oil? Overall the increasing levels of cars on the planet cannot be sustained and something is going to have to change - it just depends, what, when and how? Maybe, just, maybe Christian Forg’s speedway could be the solution.