Automatic Road Trains By 2020; Cars That Drive Themselves

Imagine this, you leave your home in the morning and drive to the motorway. Once there you team up with a number of other cars and you all inch close to each other. Then once you are in formation you can let go of the steering wheel and spend your time reading the morning paper.

This is the vision of a new part EU funded project called SARTRE (Safe Road Trains for the Environment) which will develop and test technology for vehicles so that they can drive themselves in long road trains on motorways.

“The SARTRE project brings together a unique mix of technologies, skills and expertise from European industry and academia, with the aim of encouraging the development of safe and environmentally effective road trains,” explains Tom Robinson, SARTRE project coordinator, of Ricardo UK Ltd. “By developing and implementing the technology at a vehicle level, SARTRE aims to realise the potentially very significant safety and environmental benefits of road trains without the need to invest in changes to road infrastructure.”

Related links: Cars That Drive Themselves by 2020?