What will autonomous cars mean for cities?

Google revealed this week that it is working on autonomous cars, and making a lot of progress. While it's what engineers call a nontrivial problem, making a car drive itself is ultimately just a matter of engineering, and will sooner or later become a reality.

What will it mean for our cities? Will cars that drive themselves lead to more driving or less? More sprawl or more compact living?

On the one hand, long commutes will become more tolerable. Instead of suffering behind the wheel for hours, commuters who live far from their jobs will at least be able to get some work done or watch TV. This could make distant exurbs a bit more appealing and boost sprawl.

[Continue reading David Alpert's post here at Greater Greater Washington.]

David Alpert is founder and editor of Greater Greater Washington. The Local Blog Network is a group of bloggers from around the D.C. region who have agreed to make regular contributions to All Opinions Are Local.