I personally can see this one happening. You step into what looks rather like a really nice phone booth or bus stop, and the unit drives you to your destination while you do your own thing. According to this robotic taxi's designer Petr Kubik, the scenario should work like this:
- You pick up your phone and call for the taxi.
- The closest free robotic taxi to your location (they are kept in sync by a central command) will arrive by the quickest route.
- The taxi will pull up to your location and open its door for you.
- Put your baggage in the compartment and have a seat.
- Enter your destination, by voice or by touch screen (we imagine that common places like airports and conventions would be a quick select option).
- Sit back and enjoy the quickest path ride to your destination. Along the way, watch video on the double sided cabin window or do a little internet surfing.
- Payment will be automatic via a wireless read from your credit card. Get out and go on with your journey. (We would like to see a reminder to get your luggage, but that is probably already accounted for).
Not only is it pleasing to the taxi rider, but since the taxis are in communication with each other they can work together to create a smooth traffic flow. It could also allow the system to put empty taxi cabs at key locations in the city for riders ready to hop in a taxi and go.
Of course, what is not said (and what we would imagine is quite possible) is a system that could do face detection via a camera and escort wanted riders to the local police station for processing before opening the door. That possibility could eliminate a criminal element from frequenting the system, making it a safer alternative than some other means of public transportation.
Orwellian fears aside, I think this could be a real boon to public transportation and traffic patterns in general. Not to mention it would look pretty cool to see the automated people movers quietly taking people to their destination, all en-route traffic gestures spared. At least it would be cool until Skynet comes online, but that is another story.
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Taxicab Etymology
Harry Nathaniel Allen of The New York Taxicab Co., who imported the first 600 gas-powered New York taxicabs from France, coined the word taxicab as a contraction of taximeter cab. In time, the shortened term, taxi, came into common usage. Cab is an abbreviation of cabriolet, a type of horse-drawn carriage.
In Britain, the word taxicab is rarely used. In the U.K., taximeter cab was shortened to taxi and cab, and these were and are used separately to distinguish between type of service and/or type of vehicle.
source: wikipedia