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Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

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Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#141

Post by OkayPhysicist »

PhunkyPhil wrote: post #128
kevlened wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Too much time spent inside may be a problem, but FSD turns car cabins into rooms. If we're inside already, a room with a destination is often better than a stationary one.

This is true. Now to start a tangent, what's the easier problem to solve: FSD, or a robust public transport system? Moving rooms have always been around in the form of trains, busses, streetcars etc...

Turns out, we have an answer to this: Self driving is easier. By a lot. It's not even close. No entrenched interests trying to block your infrastructure plans by claiming that your rail line passes through the territory of some flightless owl, no need to be called racist for cutting through the cheapeast land in the city to build out rails, no need to dig tunnels for subways. No need to overcome class prejudices where the middle class don't want to ride BART with the naked dude with a needle behind his ear.

To people outside the Bay, self driving might still seem like some far-off future tech. I can tell you that the future is already here. I haven't used an Uber in the last 3 years because I will always pick Waymo instead.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#142

Post by paulnpace »

octernion wrote: post #132
paulnpace wrote: post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> heartless society is when someone has to wait at a red light for a few more seconds. and yes, enumerating a set of silly non-law "rules" you expect drivers on the road to follow is the definition of entitlement. Many of the traffic lights in this valley are more than 5 minutes per cycle. You are completely naive to the facts of the discussion you have entered. Please quote my above comment where I stated my expecta…

oh the humanity, maybe on the order of a few minutes. that changes nothing. we should be inconveniencing human drivers more, if anything. that you feel obligated to use words like "sophistry" tells me everything i need to know about you.

> oh the humanity, maybe on the order of a few minutes. that changes nothing. we should be inconveniencing human drivers more, if anything.

> that you feel obligated to use words like "sophistry" tells me everything i need to know about you.

You are evaluating one traffic light in a long series of traffic lights. At this moment, the grocery store is 2.8 miles and 17 minutes from my house. This is a typical short trip in this valley. Everyone complains about the congestion and terrible drivers (who, BTW, will not be replaced by self-driving cars). Driving here sucks, and self-driving cars make it just that much worse.

That you naively make assumptions and express opinions from these assumptions tells me everything I need to know about you.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#143

Post by wedn3sday »

dingnuts wrote: post #120
ricree wrote: post #56

Just about a year and a half too late for https://longbets.org/712/ Although from the article, it sounds like this might not be servicing a wide enough area to win the bet even if the time was extended a couple years.

no the bet is lost on every count 1 it's not fully autonomous, there's a remote operator 2 not a wide enough service area as defined in the bet 3 it's a pilot program, also excluded in the bet 4 it's also a year late and the bet is very much still lost lol but we're going to have self driving cars by 2015 guys!

Is the remote operator actually driving under normal conditions, or do they just step in during an exigent circumstance?

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#144

Post by wedn3sday »

tim333 wrote: post #99
speed_spread wrote: post #61

This being Vegas, they should make it possible to bet that you'll - get lost - be late - collide with a moving car - collide with stationary object - run over a pedestrian (bonus for multiple!)

They could install a roulette wheel or slot machine in the cab to be in keeping with Vegas.

You can always do some sports betting on your phone while your getting driven around.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#145

Post by pfooti »

These little front-back symmetric buses (as well as engineering-outfitted minivans) are pretty common in the mission in SF as well. I see them all the time in a very small (four or so blocks around 16th and folsom where my pottery studio is) area, but I think they're all still just test driving.

As a waymo user, I'm looking forward to a little more competition in the market. I quite like waymo, but driving price down woudl be great.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#146

Post by PhunkyPhil »

OkayPhysicist wrote: post #140
PhunkyPhil wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think self-driving targets a problem that doesn't really exist. The issue isn't that the act of driving is a laborious task, it's simply the amount of time spent in a car, which FSD doesn't address.

It absolutely targets a problem that exists. Even in places with pretty great public transit, there is some demand for taxis/Uber/etc. Oftentimes even moreso, because if I don't need a car for 90% of trips, I might not have a car at all. So I use an Uber or a taxi when a certain trip demands it. By far the worst part about said Ubers and Taxis is the driver. They're an unpredictable element in a situation where I gre…

> It absolutely targets a problem that exists. Even in places with pretty great public transit, there is some demand for taxis/Uber/etc. Oftentimes even moreso, because if I don't need a car for 90% of trips, I might not have a car at all. So I use an Uber or a taxi when a certain trip demands it.

This says nothing about self driving cars

> So I'm not used to simply pretending this person I'm sharing a space with doesn't exist. Instead, I need to navigate the fuzzy line between courtesy and service.

I don't mean to be harsh, but, get over it? We live in a service economy. Do you feel the same way about the barista taking your coffee order?

> Waymos have none of this shit. They're clean, show up when they say they will, I can play my own music, adjust the air conditioning, and have obnoxious conversations with my friends. They drive safely, and, as a cherry on top, they're cool as hell.

I don't like the assumption you're making that Waymos are the only solution to ubers, taxis or driving yourself. Well designed and well working public transportation (Which is doable and exists in the world) is far cheaper and far more predictable than any form of car-based transportation.

Not only that, but you're not responding to my actual argument. The annoying part of driving is not the act of driving, it's the time spent in your commute.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#147

Post by PhunkyPhil »

OkayPhysicist wrote: post #141
PhunkyPhil wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is true. Now to start a tangent, what's the easier problem to solve: FSD, or a robust public transport system? Moving rooms have always been around in the form of trains, busses, streetcars etc...

Turns out, we have an answer to this: Self driving is easier. By a lot. It's not even close. No entrenched interests trying to block your infrastructure plans by claiming that your rail line passes through the territory of some flightless owl, no need to be called racist for cutting through the cheapeast land in the city to build out rails, no need to dig tunnels for subways. No need to overcome class prejudices wher…

Fair enough. I will ask, how many billions have been spent in not only FSD but the car infrastructure that makes room for FSD investment?

I'm being slightly fanatical, but if our priorities were not car-centric in the 50's, do you think we would have spent more, or less money over the last 70 years on the transportation economy?

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#148

Post by jen20 »

monero-xmr wrote: post #68
amenghra wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Vegas is also good for many other reasons: year round good weather, lots of tourists in need of taxi services, too hot to walk, too drunk to drive, etc…

#1 place cabbies have tried to scam me. #2 being Boston. Uber is such a blessing

Interestingly Vegas is the only place I will use a cab over Uber or Lyft or (preferably) Waymo. Using the Curb app to pay electronically you avoid most of the BS with cash and "their card machine being broken", and once you've done it a few times you know the actual correct routes between places.

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#149

Post by jen20 »

jerlam wrote: post #133
jewel wrote: post #52

The front-to-back symmetry is interesting. It may cause some confusion for other drivers, in some limited circumstances, when they can't tell which way the vehicle is facing. It appears, based on my study of the footage on https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIRW8bfy4kE , that it could possibly switch which side is the front and the back by just changing the color of the lights. With RGB LEDs that would be pretty easy to…

I wonder if there are barf bags for the backwards-facing passengers.

London Taxis have been configured this way since at least the 1950s and people don't seem to have any problem with it?

Re: Zoox robotaxi launches in Las Vegas

#150

Post by Workaccount2 »

ratelimitsteve wrote: post #125
maelito wrote: post #4

The most useful thing I expect from robotaxis is speed regulations. What's considered normal for humans, driving higher than the speed limits, will not for automatic cars.

I disagree wholeheartedly. I think the most useful thing about robotaxis is that you can count on them to pay attention and react within a given timeframe and that speed limits will either be expanded greatly, eliminated or calculated as a function of the capabilities of the individual hardware in question rather than our best guess as to how an average person would probably react. I'm looking forward to driverless c…

Reminds me of the .gif floating around years ago showing an intersection with cars blowing through it in both directions while very intentionally just missing other cars.
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