Comment by numpad0
3 hours ago
> bumfuck nowhere with expensive electricity, zero solar power and a daily 5 hour commute
If we put aside 5 hour commute, this describes central Tokyo, not bumfuck nowhere. Bumfuck nowhere has land for offgrid solar and therefore free home charging.
If the city you're in offers free roadside parking with L1 or L2 charging on light poles, good for you, but Tokyo and Japan at large isn't like that at all(unattended roadside parking is banned nationwide and robotic garages are everywhere).
If you're in the city a car shouldn't even be a major consideration (ideally).
That's true for majority of cases, but a small percentage of Tokyo that needs to visit places taxis and trains don't go is still a large number.
Thinking 10 years down the road, will autonomous rentals be geo-fenced and not suitable for multi-day trips to rural places?
A car should always be a major consideration for someone's needs. Especially if you have a family with young children or are disabled. Discounting cars as useless because mass transit exists is a terrible idea.
Robotic WHAT? That's crazy, if it's what I'm imagining. Is Tokyo that much crowded?
It’s not some Japan-only technology. You see them in New York City too.
20 years ago https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHAkCLk6wP8
You park your car in a stall, get out of your car, and then the stall closes and it moves a platform under your car and stores it someplace. You punch in your claim number, pay your parking fee, and then it gets your car and puts it back in the stall.
They're in places other than Tokyo as well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6blks7vfZog
One was featured in the old Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift movie. That was probably the first time I had seen one, about 20 years ago.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hHAkCLk6wP8
https://roboticparking.com/how-it-works/
...as one example.
Unlike bumfuck nowhere, Tokyo offers decent public transportation. Right?