Originally Posted by ATC Watcher
at that time the boats and the trains will likely be automated too
Originally Posted by Herod
Yes, but they are not so dependent on the law of gravity
Tell that to BHP....
Originally Posted by Lord Farringdon
You've just described high speed trains carrying hundreds of passenger at a time. Although, if the driver of one of those decided to punch through a red signal, auto braking systems would engage and cant be over ridden. Everyone lives and the driver is carted off by Police. Anyone ever considered why we don't have driverless trains?
You do. Many systems are driverless. Even leaving the Driver's on board, you are still reliant on automated signalling systems, supposedly fail-safe and
they still have problems. As
Futurama pointed out, Sydney just opened their new Metro system, and are planning on extending it into the southwest in years to come, with contracts being let to commence the installation of ATO-capable signalling on their heavy-rail network.
Rio Tinto is moving some of the heaviest trains in the world thousands of miles daily, with no driver's within cooee. They are not without their teething problems, but the system appears to be proving itself reliable enough to continue with thus far. If it was that bad or unreliable that it was hurting their bottom line, they would get rid of it in a heartbeat and reintroduce manned trains.