Introduction 介绍
Since the end of the Second World War, there have been significant revolutions in technology, which has changed the way people function and perceive their environment. In this regard, technology has become the centre of human life and as such, it is almost impossible for people to live comfortably without it. One of the areas that are currently receiving significant attention because of the impact of technology is the transport sector. This paper evaluates how self-driving and autonomous cars will transform commuting in society. To begin with, Tettamanti, Varga and Szalay (2016) define autonomous cars as cars that have the capability to evaluate their environment using advanced sensors and as such, control their movement without the help of a human driver. Arguably, the proponents of autonomous cars reiterate that in future, people will not need to own cars since the existence of self-driving cars will provide enhanced pick-up services. Therefore, it will be uneconomical and inefficient for one to purchase his or her car. Due to reduce number of cars on the road, traffic jams will reduce significant. Furthermore, governments across the globe will reduce their investment in development projects such as carparks since fewer cars will require such facilities. Importantly, despite the transformation that autonomous or self-driving cars are likely to bring in commuting, there is a need to critically evaluate different impacts of autonomous cars and as such, establish how these cars will transform the transportation sector. Speaking from this point of view, this paper examines environment sustainability of autonomous cars. Similarly, the paper will discuss the impact of autonomous cars from an ethical perspective.
自第二次世界大战结束以来，出现了重大的技术革命，改变了人们的功能和感知环境的方式。在这方面，技术已成为人类生活的中心，因此，没有技术，人们几乎不可能过上舒适的生活。由于技术的影响，目前受到重大关注的领域之一是运输部门。本文评估了自动驾驶和自动驾驶汽车将如何改变社会上的通勤。首先，Tettamanti、Varga和Szalay（2016）将自动驾驶汽车定义为能够使用先进传感器评估其环境，从而在无需驾驶员帮助的情况下控制其运动的汽车。可以说，自动驾驶汽车的支持者重申，在未来，人们将不需要拥有汽车，因为自动驾驶汽车的存在将提供更好的接送服务。因此，一个人购买自己的汽车既不经济也没有效率。由于路上汽车数量的减少，交通堵塞将大大减少。此外，全球各国政府将减少对停车场等开发项目的投资，因为需要此类设施的汽车将减少。重要的是，尽管自动驾驶汽车或自动驾驶汽车可能带来通勤，但仍需要严格评估自动驾驶汽车的不同影响，并确定这些汽车将如何改变交通部门。从这个角度出发，本文考察了自主汽车的环境可持续性。同样，本文将从伦理角度讨论自动驾驶汽车的影响。
Specific impact of autonomous cars 自动驾驶汽车的具体影响
To begin with, one of the greatest impacts of autonomous cars is on environmental sustainability. In line with this, the wide adoption of autonomous cars in society will be accompanied by a significant reduction in pollution particularly in urban areas, thus improving environmental sustainability. Research and studies reveal that the transportation sector across the globe is a major contributor of air pollution apart from industries that rely on fossil fuel such as coal and oil to function. In their analysis on the impact of the transport sector on air pollution, Colvile, Hutchinson, Mindell and Warren (2001) observe that this sector, particularly the road transport, is a major contributor of gaseous emissions in the environment, thus contributing significantly to poor air quality in urban areas, as well as the depletion of the ozone layer. To account for this massive pollution particularly in road transport, Davis, Caldeira and Matthews (2010) observe that more than 90 percent vehicles on the road today rely on fossil fuels, which have a significantly higher negative impact on the environment as compared to non-fossil fuels. In addition, these researchers observe that whereas regions such as Europe have witnessed a decline in demand for vehicles over the past couple of years, regions such as China and Africa have witnessed an increase in demand for vehicles, thus increasing the level of air pollution due to road transport in these areas. Whereas this is the case, the introduction and adoption of autonomous cars in different parts of the globe will contribute to a decline in gaseous emissions because of a number of factors. First, due to the efficiency of autonomous cars in picking and dropping passengers, there will be a reduction in the demand for cars for private use, particularly in urban areas (Fagnant & Kockelman, 2015). As a result of this, the number of cars on the road will decline by a significant margin, leading to a decline in gaseous emissions in these areas and as such, an improved environmental sustainability. Secondly, these cars will rely on different technologies such as optimisation of routes thus reducing the amount of travelling time and as such, the amount of time of using a particular vehicle, as well as technologies such as enhanced control of the car thus reducing unnecessary burning of fuel (Bagloee, Tavana, Asadi & Oliver, 2016). Therefore, with improved efficiency control of the car, there would a significant reduction in gaseous emission, thus helping lower or reverse the level of pollution in the environment. This will enhance sustainability particularly in urban areas.
首先，自动驾驶汽车的更大影响之一是对环境可持续性的影响。与此相一致，在社会上广泛采用自动驾驶汽车将大大减少污染，特别是在城市地区，从而提高环境可持续性。研究表明，除了依赖煤炭和石油等化石燃料的工业外，全球的交通运输部门也是空气污染的主要贡献者。Colvile、Hutchinson、Mindell和Warren（2001年）在分析交通运输业对空气污染的影响时指出，交通运输业，尤其是道路运输业，是环境中气体排放的主要贡献者，从而大大加剧了城市地区空气质量差的问题，以及臭氧层的损耗。为了解释这种大规模污染，特别是道路运输中的污染，Davis、Caldeira和Matthews（2010）观察到，目前道路上90%以上的车辆依赖化石燃料，与非化石燃料相比，化石燃料对环境的负面影响要大得多。此外，这些研究人员观察到，过去几年中，欧洲等地区的车辆需求有所下降，而中国和非洲等地区的车辆需求有所增加，从而增加了这些地区道路运输造成的空气污染水平。鉴于这种情况，由于许多因素，在全球不同地区引进和采用自动驾驶汽车将有助于减少气体排放。首先，由于自动驾驶汽车在接送乘客方面的效率，私人用车的需求将会减少，尤其是在城市地区（Fagnant&Kockelman，2015）。因此，道路上的汽车数量将大幅下降，导致这些地区的气体排放量下降，从而改善环境可持续性。其次，这些汽车将依赖不同的技术，如优化路线从而减少行驶时间，从而减少使用特定车辆的时间，以及加强对汽车的控制从而减少不必要的燃油燃烧等技术（Bagloee、Tavana、Asadi&Oliver，2016）。因此，随着汽车效率控制的提高，气体排放量将显著减少，从而有助于降低或扭转环境污染水平。这将提高可持续性，特别是在城市地区。