By: Mr. Slide
Think about this: you’ve just landed in an exotic city for the first time. You don’t know anything about the town and you’re itching for some sizzling entertainment. Who’s the first person you ask for fun suggestions? That’s right — the taxi driver at the airport[1].
The cabbie will break off into a 45min rant about the best spots in town before dropping you off at your hotel. Five seconds after exiting the vehicle you immediately realize you forgot all the hot spots he mentioned (along with your passport, wallet, phone, and suitcase) in the taxi.
It’s a vacation tradition!
Yellow Cab3
Well, not anymore actually. The automotive company Continental has designed a fancy new (autonomous) taxi replacement. It’s known as the CUbE and it’s absolutely WILD looking.
The CUbE’s perfectly rectangular shape gives it a toolbox-on-wheels kind of swagger. Continental claims that the CUbE’s figure allows the inside to be comfier than a taxicab…c’mon, the inside of a chicken coop is comfier than a taxicab.
Regardless, the main selling point with the CUbE is that it will cut down traffic. Continental claims that the autonomous taxi will be more efficient because it can carry a lot of people, thereby fostering an environment of ride splitting.
Flip the CUbE
Wait, wait, wait…a taxi replacement? Leave the taxis alone; they’ve been through enough with the ride-sharing app fad. Plus, I think the CUbE would be the perfect bus replacement. Imagine that, send the CUbE to the gym for a few months and BOOM — efficient autonomous mass-transportation. The taxis aren’t the biggest threats on the roads…it’s the buses. They’re too big, unattractive, and volatile, replace them with the CUbE and create happier roads for all. Keep the vacation tradition alive.
[1] Or, if your under the age of 40, the Uber driver at the airport (same deal)
The Powerslide 